tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12219721963261153782024-03-09T21:47:12.299-05:00The Rick Umali Blogrickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.comBlogger870125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-79368556385195459712024-02-29T23:47:00.001-05:002024-02-29T23:47:45.456-05:00Unlit Stall Thoughts<p>A few weeks ago I was in a bathroom stall at work, playing some <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2016/08/freecell.html">Freecell</a>, passing a little time and a little gas. Not much else though. Suddenly, the lights went out. </p><p>After that split-second of low-grade confusion, I realized that I was the only person in the bathroom, and the facility's motion detector must have shut off the lights when it didn't detect anyone moving. I certainly wasn't doing much moving (in more ways than one).</p><p>My thoughts went towards how you might add sensors in the stalls or even the toilets. Those sensors could communicate to the lights that there were people inside who couldn't move but were nonetheless present. It could do double-duty by tracking stall usage.</p><p>But then my thoughts went towards the ancient times. How did people go to the bathroom at night before there were lights? Did they just stumble around their unlit homes? Did they fire up a candle? What about <a href="https://letterboxd.com/rickumali/film/quest-for-fire/">prehistoric times</a>? Did people just wake up in the night then wander nearby to relieve themselves? They would likely be concerned about predators.</p><p>My thoughts finally settled back towards mid-2021, back to when COVID was starting to fade away. Nearly four years later, <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2021/10/covid-19-returning-to-office.html">my office building is a small fraction of its former population</a>. How long before someone else walks into this bathroom? I waved my arms, but that didn't trigger the lights. </p><p>Just as I started to think practically about finishing up in the dark, someone else walked in. The lights came on. I thought about how this person might have calculated he had the whole bathroom to himself, but then realized another person was here, sitting in the dark. He went into anoter stall, and then I made my way out, into the light.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOOGgC4tsY2i0zLtNA6_yIU1XTzBBs8ti_VmPDCyVgE-N1NON-eKduswMUXi6NEcjkm3RzG0327zDQIMuYgJrRbDNazSFilNYWTbuJ7kDS1C1AJwRcY8GdtE-iJSo5t4zvVAK8Mrf_nT2Z7beRnErxK7hpMij9omtWQPqmYQG7-uVglkoYbxe0wgBZDmM/s800/bathroom.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="800" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOOGgC4tsY2i0zLtNA6_yIU1XTzBBs8ti_VmPDCyVgE-N1NON-eKduswMUXi6NEcjkm3RzG0327zDQIMuYgJrRbDNazSFilNYWTbuJ7kDS1C1AJwRcY8GdtE-iJSo5t4zvVAK8Mrf_nT2Z7beRnErxK7hpMij9omtWQPqmYQG7-uVglkoYbxe0wgBZDmM/s320/bathroom.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Bathroom from Post</span></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-30247453304914472352024-01-31T19:37:00.003-05:002024-01-31T19:37:57.715-05:00My 2023 Books and Movies<p>In 2023, I read <a href="https://www.librarything.com/catalog/rickumali?tag=Read%20in%202023">25 books (LibraryThing)</a> and watched <a href="https://letterboxd.com/rickumali/films/diary/for/2023/">66 movies (Letterboxd)</a> (24 were rewatches).</p><p>My favorite book: Solito. I won't ever forget the gentle bravery of the little boy in this immigration story. Another favorite that I read in that same month was <a href="https://daveeggers.net/dave-eggers">Dave Eggers'</a> A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius. Its <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maximalism">maximalist</a> style jumps off the page and I greatly enjoyed it.</p><p>My favorite movie: <a href="https://letterboxd.com/rickumali/film/the-holdovers/">The Holdovers</a>. I so loved the sweet sadness of this movie. The fact that some of the movie takes in place in Boston only adds to it. Other new movies from last year that I liked: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shW9i6k8cB0">Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P15S6ND8kbQ">No Hard Feelings</a>.<br /></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8X5Yf4YvBLZKCAEXZc-0il2x6ufxRX2hG8gtHmyo8nv7ECju-ydeNsDeOJWPHZizAH4_O63EgoLARpfKRv6RKnn4Yl6zJR97ER_B7aSRTq61RQM9qAtTqDE1UrfC-Cb3E-Z4Adii_Ae9joCCW0VLu3Z9MUO2lYHYIqvx2oXaIwCvzm8CZmuGsQJanEw/s1040/books-2023.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="551" data-original-width="1040" height="170" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhk8X5Yf4YvBLZKCAEXZc-0il2x6ufxRX2hG8gtHmyo8nv7ECju-ydeNsDeOJWPHZizAH4_O63EgoLARpfKRv6RKnn4Yl6zJR97ER_B7aSRTq61RQM9qAtTqDE1UrfC-Cb3E-Z4Adii_Ae9joCCW0VLu3Z9MUO2lYHYIqvx2oXaIwCvzm8CZmuGsQJanEw/s320/books-2023.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Some books I read in 2023</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-29563980659681259792023-12-31T09:00:00.001-05:002023-12-31T19:56:49.945-05:00Welcoming the New Year with AI<p>I asked <a href="https://chat.openai.com">ChatGPT</a> to write my monthly essay a few weeks ago. I first asked if it could write an essay, and it replied "Please provide me a topic or a prompt and I'll be happy to generate a 400-word essay for you." How about that? It would be happy. My prompt: "Wrapping up the old year and welcoming the new year."</p><p>The words poured out of the ChatGPT window quickly and assuredly. Put it this way: it "generated" 400 words faster than it took me to write the title to this post. The essay it generated had this opening sentence: <i>As the final days of the year unfold, it is a natural inclination for individuals to engage in reflection, taking stock of the events that transpired over the past twelve months.</i> (To see the rest, <a href="https://rgu.freeshell.org/year-end-chatgpt.html">click here</a>.)</p><p>This essay request is my latest foray with AI. Earlier in the year an old friend asked if I was up to date on AI, and I sheepishly admitted that I was not. I was in the camp of being against it, though I was curious about its recent hype. In the Summer, after a co-worker expressed great enthusiasm for it, I finally logged into <a href="https://bard.google.com/chat">Bard</a> and gave it a spin.</p><p>I first used AI for looking up technical details I would normally search with Google. <a href="https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/sites/let-me-google-that-for-you-lmgtfy">LMGTFY</a> is a meme after all! The AI robots have a very confident presentation in their answers. When I type their code or commands in, most of the time their excerpts work! Of course, when they don't work I have to scroll through Google results or use my brain.</p><p>Writing essays and <a href="https://creator.nightcafe.studio/u/rickumali">doing drawings was something I knew AI could do</a>. I liked what the AI produced for me, but it ended its essay with this sentence: <i>In conclusion, wrapping up the old year and welcoming the new year is a profound and universal experience that unites humanity in reflection and anticipation.</i></p><p>I didn't like the phrase "In conclusion". Too stuffy! Also, it was a bit repetitive. The more I read the essay, the more I found it sterile, and lacking in personality. I like to think that a regular reader of my writing would be able to tell if I decided to replace my writing with an AI's writing. </p><p>What I liked though were the AI's ideas. I liked its conclusion that the year end is not just a "temporal event", but merely a step in our "continuous journey" of growth. I agree with it. I know that the AI is not thinking these ideas, but one day when it does start thinking and writing on its own, I'd prompt it to give me another draft!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2qa2D9GrF0TSR0La02kM2MX4Ig9C8JY-FJNwd3CeMjC_4Qbg2DHqecOvtGosCVyxJ_5Yi-TJMyVnhJRC01lPyZLtfYYEMH-E765IgCm9AZcQBJltNbpXtlF-94W2UPmVg02bGWLf5M1azjYUArvLtfnIN6MJerr7xr7Gu_S_iSWnEzPOea5rIJ5YnRc/s240/chatgpt.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="240" data-original-width="240" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2qa2D9GrF0TSR0La02kM2MX4Ig9C8JY-FJNwd3CeMjC_4Qbg2DHqecOvtGosCVyxJ_5Yi-TJMyVnhJRC01lPyZLtfYYEMH-E765IgCm9AZcQBJltNbpXtlF-94W2UPmVg02bGWLf5M1azjYUArvLtfnIN6MJerr7xr7Gu_S_iSWnEzPOea5rIJ5YnRc/w200-h200/chatgpt.png" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">ChatGPT</td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-7459032005465644052023-11-30T19:18:00.002-05:002023-11-30T19:18:27.333-05:00Ads and Ad Blockers<p>I don't use any ad blockers on my devices. I'm not a fan of advertising, but I have a grudging belief that advertising pays for content. I think about old media like newspapers, television and radio. Consumers of this media endured ads because they were getting something of value: news, entertainment, new music. Ads and content were locked together.<br /></p><p>It's hard to justify this position with our new media options today. I can get news from an X (formerly Twitter) timeline, entertainment from TikTok and new music from Spotify. At best, ads get in the way, and at worst they're intrusive. For new media, it turns out you can separate ads from content. I then remind myself that ads provide the funds for the media platform and their creators.</p>Old media consumers could be considered a passive audience. We just turn to our newspaper, or TV, or radio, and have content instantly available. New media consumers are a more active audience. New media involves establishing a subscription, and perhaps a new device. <br /><p>The old media audience understood there was no practical way to
block out ads. The most you can do is lower the volume on
the TV or radio when the ads come on. That's what I do. The new media audience have easy ways to stop most ads, but it involves action: <a href="https://getadblock.com/en/">installing a plugin</a>, setting up a <a href="https://pi-hole.net/">Pi Hole</a>, etc. <br /></p><p>In the end, <a href="https://news.slashdot.org/story/23/10/31/2151258/youtube-is-getting-serious-about-blocking-ad-blockers">it's a software battle</a>: consumer ad blocker software versus media platform servers. Is your ad blocker adept enough to
prevent an ad from pre-rolling on Netflix? Or a major news website? It's
pretty clear which group has more money.</p><p>The <a href="https://www.quora.com/Who-originally-suggested-that-if-youre-not-paying-for-the-product-you-are-the-product">new media adage</a> is "if you're getting something for free, you're likely the product." Whenever I'm scrolling through Facebook or TikTok, I'm aware that ads pay for the content <i>and</i> for my (brief) attention. I can only hope they're good ads!<br /></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40XcLOCId01dvRtfTa8O81M97of7P6GI_DpxCw4tx3JY1CApqp21fSoGlJcji8AOXyqpGsJ2CSfCg5f1XnNQwboTSdMhAG78NFKxkRZHoCosePjdbeEG7r0WB7Z3VCP-0Gchp7PSixlGWIB5p6KWbLeiKwzsjExUvb1aQvk5n6TMnO_L88coKDuFJPko/s60/ad-block.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="60" data-original-width="60" height="106" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg40XcLOCId01dvRtfTa8O81M97of7P6GI_DpxCw4tx3JY1CApqp21fSoGlJcji8AOXyqpGsJ2CSfCg5f1XnNQwboTSdMhAG78NFKxkRZHoCosePjdbeEG7r0WB7Z3VCP-0Gchp7PSixlGWIB5p6KWbLeiKwzsjExUvb1aQvk5n6TMnO_L88coKDuFJPko/w106-h106/ad-block.png" width="106" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://getadblock.com/en/">AdBlock</a></td></tr></tbody></table>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-87287275337657398772023-10-31T22:01:00.000-04:002023-10-31T22:01:23.490-04:00Doodling and Drawing<p>The greatest video on YouTube to me is Jeremiah's <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFGAQrEUaeU">"A Conversation with my 12 Year Old Self"</a>. It is funny and witty and always makes me laugh. It's been on the Internet for 11+ years and it's an easy favorite.<br /></p><p>There is a part in the video where the older present-day Jeremiah asks "What were you doing before you made this video?" and young Jeremiah gives an answer that completely pauses the older Jeremiah. The young Jeremiah was drawing! He shows a picture of a funny looking rabbit, and the older Jeremiah is stunned. It's a perfect moment, in a video that is full of perfect moments. </p><p>Not long after rewatching this I found myself doodling more at work. It's the perfect thing to do during long remote meetings when you're not speaking! Like the young Jeremiah, the young version of myself liked drawing. A long-ago friend helped spur my interest by bringing over a copy of "Draw Comics the Marvel Way" and from that I learned how to draw grimacing faces and action poses.<br /></p><p>Like all childhood things, doodling and drawing somehow faded away. But I never really forgot them. When we moved out of our house <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2019/12/tidying-up.html">I found in the basement</a> an old notebook of those long-ago "Action Comics" that I drew "the Marvel Way". The story was about a hard-edged secret agent named Clint Cad. It's a remarkable time capsule!</p><p>Like all childhood things, it's fun to take it up again. Drawing, like making music, or writing, or crafting, feeds our creative nature. And while there's an analytical side that gets frustrated at every imperfection, I have been channeling the advice that perfection isn't the goal. Instead, it's about the process and being in a different headspace.<br /></p><p>Since I spend my entire working day exercising my analytical nature, it's fun to let my mind engage in something so different and creative. I'm glad it's reentered my life and I'll keep going with this for as long as I can.<br /></p><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXKGjircYYvIiEn0_q6imdtZXawuVMAMJGiLrgEtspDGnalGdsioj4P0efoCtR0zco7bxU1A52Tj6G4ZnnUgh3PLa4uFZq_QTLeYV-cVKPYon2vwhWJbNR7ROXRyu0yh-bHNY6JhZ1FgPsG2N63PpWMzz9zjxp3PI8yC9JC4KzemMIsaUmXZllONhmec/s3024/doodles.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhrXKGjircYYvIiEn0_q6imdtZXawuVMAMJGiLrgEtspDGnalGdsioj4P0efoCtR0zco7bxU1A52Tj6G4ZnnUgh3PLa4uFZq_QTLeYV-cVKPYon2vwhWJbNR7ROXRyu0yh-bHNY6JhZ1FgPsG2N63PpWMzz9zjxp3PI8yC9JC4KzemMIsaUmXZllONhmec/s320/doodles.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br />rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-6593764597240464002023-09-30T14:06:00.001-04:002023-09-30T18:46:38.090-04:00Rodrigo!<p>I walked into a restaurant to grab my takeout order and as I approached the pick up area the cashier called to me: "Rodrigo!" Rodrigo? Then I realized he was hailing me by my real name, the one I rarely tell people about. He must have gotten Rodrigo from the credit card slip. Since college <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2004/06/i-go-by-rick.html">I have always introduced myself as Rick</a>, leaving Rodrigo for my tax returns, passport, and other official documents.</p><p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodrigo">Rodrigo</a> is a great name but it is a mouthful. For some of my grade school classmates growing up in New Jersey, they would elide the "d", which comes out like "Rawr-rigo". If I'm remembering the story correctly, my parents began to call me Ric (and Ricky) because in the 1950s there was a Filipino actor named Ric Rodrigo. I am able to see web pages <a href="http://movie-industry.blogspot.com/2007/12/ric-rodrigo.html">[1]</a> <a href="http://isamunangpatalastas.blogspot.com/2018/05/162-filipino-matinee-idols-in-three.html">[2]</a> and even <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CgRxsU-EpdM">a YouTube video (in Tagalog)</a> that prove this namesake. I only wish he had gotten into an American movie!<br /></p><p>After my momentary surprise at being called Rodrigo, I confirmed that I was indeed Rodrigo, here to pick up my Saturday night takeout. I guessed he was probably still in high school based on his long floppy hair beneath a baseball cap. I silently applauded his boldness. When I was his age, I addressed older men as sir or mister and I suppose over the last several years I've come to expect that.</p><p>I wish I had responded to him with humor or boldness: "And what's your name young man?" or "What do they call you sonny?" I wish I had asked for his name! I'll be sure to next time I'm there. And I'll be sure to invite him to call me Rick.</p><p></p><div style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi9SUjQbfXQAgJt8eqCpocoxUpOEbP8GTq_jyoVq-2q9_h-cg3cKClT3V91BDdfwKS9Px8o2SP0LwRM-l6GfkDvmx4AS54_RMa6pMGKcj9WdYTamB3H_i61GoQCKZ6BGBshH6kNv4zjN4H0Z6PeXmpVYsCJCl2Gla7iGVZjlnKZ2BZf1iysBzZgd26fRA/s497/ric-rodrigo.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="477" data-original-width="497" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhi9SUjQbfXQAgJt8eqCpocoxUpOEbP8GTq_jyoVq-2q9_h-cg3cKClT3V91BDdfwKS9Px8o2SP0LwRM-l6GfkDvmx4AS54_RMa6pMGKcj9WdYTamB3H_i61GoQCKZ6BGBshH6kNv4zjN4H0Z6PeXmpVYsCJCl2Gla7iGVZjlnKZ2BZf1iysBzZgd26fRA/w320-h307/ric-rodrigo.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-27190625341437679972023-08-31T19:34:00.002-04:002023-08-31T19:34:29.615-04:00Gas Translation<p>At the gas station a few weeks ago, I was sitting in my car jotting down my mileage. My door was open. <br /></p><p>The person pumping gas to my left (my gas cap is on the driver side) waved to me. Though unusual, I said "hello" and then made to close my door. He raised his hand again and said "Wait. Wait." I braced myself for a <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2021/04/directions-ii.html">directions question</a> or perhaps <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2020/04/covid-19-handouts.html">a plea for money</a>.<br /></p><p>He then held his phone to his mouth and spoke into it. It was not English or Spanish. If I had to guess, I would say it was Portugese. He then turned his phone's screen towards me. On it was <a href="https://translate.google.com/">Google Translate</a>, and the English text said "Can you show me how to subscribe to gas?"</p><p>After a blink I realized what he needed. I got out of my car. He moved off to the side, pointing at the gas pump. The gas station had pumps where you indicated the grade of gas by pulling the appropriate handle. When I looked at him, he pointed again, this time at the sign with the lowest price. </p><p>"Yes, yes," I said. Then I looked at the credit card reader and gave the universal sign for money: rubbing my thumb across my fingers. "Pay? Pay?" I asked. He replied in his indecipherable language. I shook my head. He spoke into his phone again. When he showed it to me, it said "I paid inside already."</p><p>I next lifted the handle indicating the cheapest gas option. I picked up the gas nozzle, walked to his open filler and showed him where the nozzle went. I then signaled for him to pull the nozzle's trigger. The display began to cycle and we heard the clunk-clunk of a working gas pump.</p><p>I smiled to him this time. He did too. He waved and said "Thank You" in accented English. I smiled and waved and got into my car. All he used to communicate to me was "Wait", "Thank You" and Google Translate. I wonder if I could do as well with just these if I were in his native country.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPOFpFb6EQwapX53kuOFUd0g6Nq0akH5smN7evr8xJQiC03OlsH7oo6KQCad4gFMXdabog4nse3KyGsr2bYiCvCDC5b8-uoGbbJQ-yxu-P0k72hrJcpH3PNdZPADDd1BSJKcvBCWar10i9O-k6_dYDiqeqeCjt1_-Cy5fN6I7pphb9zXWAW2_N2NTRAS4/s800/gas-pump-gulf-nh.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="800" data-original-width="566" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiPOFpFb6EQwapX53kuOFUd0g6Nq0akH5smN7evr8xJQiC03OlsH7oo6KQCad4gFMXdabog4nse3KyGsr2bYiCvCDC5b8-uoGbbJQ-yxu-P0k72hrJcpH3PNdZPADDd1BSJKcvBCWar10i9O-k6_dYDiqeqeCjt1_-Cy5fN6I7pphb9zXWAW2_N2NTRAS4/s320/gas-pump-gulf-nh.jpg" width="226" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Photo by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/22280677@N07/2925247827">Sean (Flickr)</a></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table><p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-31718044141055290422023-07-31T19:42:00.001-04:002023-07-31T19:42:32.397-04:00Working on Cars<p>On my way to <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2019/02/the-cars-of-my-life.html">my car</a>, I saw a man and (presumably) his son in front of their car with the hood up. The man was examining the engine and showing it to their kid. I wondered what he might be saying to him. "This here is the watchamacallit... And this is the doohickey..." It reminded me a bit of growing up.</p><p>My Dad showed me car stuff too. We started with easy things: brake fluid, transmission fluid, and engine coolant. (It never occurred to me to
ask why our car at the time needed some of these fluids replenished so frequently.) He then showed me how to check and change the engine oil. It was vital work but getting my hands dirty in this fashion didn't appeal to me.<br /></p><p>Years later at a college job my car wouldn't start in the parking lot after work. Someone came out and asked if I was having some problems. I said yes and he said "let's take a look." At least I could open the hood for him. He peered inside and fiddled with some cables. After a few minutes he asked me to start the engine and sure enough it started! It felt like a magic trick.</p><p>That was back in the 1980s. In today's cars, the engine block under the hood is more sleek and
seemingly less open. I wonder if that competent and kind gentleman could get a modern car to start. For one thing, <a href="https://www.caranddriver.com/car-accessories/g42938164/best-obd2-car-scanners-tested/">you need a computer to examine any "check engine" problems.</a> And in battery electric vehicles, an engine
block full of engine oil isn't even present. What is there to fiddle with? </p><p>I am drawn to automotive tools however. <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2005/12/grass-is-always-greener.html">Maybe in another life</a> I would have been a auto mechanic. I've seen the posted mechanics' labor rates at various car garages. It's a decent-paying job, with its own computer work. And maybe in that other life, I'd be curious about the computer talking to the car and wonder how I could work with the computer instead.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-2YwfCLXYvjWOQyzqN_3N1LbZ8cnE8m1eOMmRs4ysje1C2s05K4QsiYXfS_ZyvZpdMURAtTC0Fs7Dz3A-gN0dUJ_aEarUFMSGYKEEesAFJoYrl6lZPcklgb34ENXWtz1iBQN-YAP-LDygLLxtNCuVriO_KwQTZzhoGzq3jjCE4f_buUD9GQxxfeK5Dg/s799/auto-mechanic.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="534" data-original-width="799" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_-2YwfCLXYvjWOQyzqN_3N1LbZ8cnE8m1eOMmRs4ysje1C2s05K4QsiYXfS_ZyvZpdMURAtTC0Fs7Dz3A-gN0dUJ_aEarUFMSGYKEEesAFJoYrl6lZPcklgb34ENXWtz1iBQN-YAP-LDygLLxtNCuVriO_KwQTZzhoGzq3jjCE4f_buUD9GQxxfeK5Dg/s320/auto-mechanic.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">(photo: <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/nenadstojkovic/51286104982/">Nenad Stojkovic</a>)</span></td></tr></tbody></table>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-65782482100647378882023-06-30T19:00:00.002-04:002023-06-30T19:02:13.688-04:00Spielberg Movies Ranked<p>In preparation for Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, I watched for the first time the fourth Indiana Jones movie: The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (starring Harrison Ford and Shia LeBeouf). I gave it 3 out of 5 stars. That's a low rating since I consider myself a generous grader when it comes to movies. I thought that out of all of Stephen Spieberg's movies, The Kingdom of the Crystral Skull is his worst output as a movie director.</p><p>To back up ths claim, I checked <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steven_Spielberg_filmography">his credits</a>. He has directed over 35 feature films, and by my recollection I've seen 17 of them. Here is how I would rank the Spielberg movies I have seen:</p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>Saving Private Ryan (1998)</li><li>Minority Report (2002)</li><li>Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)</li><li>Jurassic Park (1993)</li><li>Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)</li><li>Munich (2005)</li><li>War of the Worlds (2005)</li><li>Schindler's List (1993)</li><li>Catch Me If You Can (2002)</li><li>E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)</li><li>Poltergeist (1982)</li><li>The Post (2017)</li><li>Jaws (1975)</li><li>The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)</li><li>Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)</li><li>Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)</li><li>Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)</li></ol><p style="text-align: left;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saving_Private_Ryan">Saving Private Ryan</a> is a masterwork, and possibly also my favorite war movie of all time (close runner-ups: Inglourious Basterds and Full Metal Jacket). It is powerful and visually stunning. The cast is incredible, the music is rousing, and the action is unbeatable. The emotional punch from this movie is intense. It was easy to select this as my number one favorite Spielberg movie.</p><p style="text-align: left;">From this list, you can probably skip the last four movies, but the rest I would recommend, and the first 5 are must-see. Some might dispute <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poltergeist_(1982_film)">Poltergeist (1982)</a> since the credited director is Tobe Hooper, but I've always considered Poltergeist a Spielberg directed movie (and he was the writer).</p><p style="text-align: left;">Of the Spielberg movies I haven't watched, these are on my watch list: The Terminal (2004), Lincoln (2012), and Ready Player One (2018). How would you rank your Spielberg movie list?</p><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiYBdl4TeF8HQynpyGaDq5Q69hQEfn270joZ9x0om5ieS1OtTWMytUdecVoxDdzNwFtA1fQKjyuGN8i215_6oQoptQqRasoh8Ojh21xDabN2sdc8kqtoKgYKxUmZvWhTtSoi9-U0qltsfJhcGPIeVGz3lOJZPP4KX4FEDk1jAkpE5gJlhUlFzWcs2A1I/s509/spielberg.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="509" data-original-width="507" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbiYBdl4TeF8HQynpyGaDq5Q69hQEfn270joZ9x0om5ieS1OtTWMytUdecVoxDdzNwFtA1fQKjyuGN8i215_6oQoptQqRasoh8Ojh21xDabN2sdc8kqtoKgYKxUmZvWhTtSoi9-U0qltsfJhcGPIeVGz3lOJZPP4KX4FEDk1jAkpE5gJlhUlFzWcs2A1I/s320/spielberg.png" width="319" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div><div><span style="font-variant-ligatures: no-common-ligatures;"><br /></span></div>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-54857038270202974802023-05-31T20:37:00.005-04:002023-05-31T20:37:43.466-04:00WJIB AM 740 (RIP Bob Bittner)On the Facebook group "Friends and Lovers of WJIB", there was a post requesting songs people had learned by listening to oldies radio station WJIB. The poster wanted a song "that you did not know before" hearing it on WJIB. My mind immediately went to the song Faraway Places, performed by Vera Lynn.<br /><br />WJIB is a radio station up here in New England. I first learned of it at a barbershop I used to go to back when I lived in Arlington, MA. <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2013/11/an-immigrants-gratitude.html">The barbers there were primarily old Italian men</a>, and I enjoyed their banter while I got my hair cut. One time I noticed the music playing in their shop and I asked where it was coming from. They told me it was WJIB.<br /><br />WJIB plays music from a different era, one that I realized was primarily crooners and big swing bands, from the 1930s through 1950s. I am not a regular listener. Instead, I'd go on WJIB whenever I wanted to listen to something new and different. And instead of venturing into today's music, I'd venture into the distant past.<br /><br />One day I heard Faraway Places on WJIB, and I was instantly smitten. It was sung by such a beautiful voice, and the lyrics were wistful and captivating:<br /><br />Those faraway places<br />With the strange soundin' names<br />Are callin', callin' me<br /><br />I liked its slow and gentle beat. I sang the chorus to myself a few times so that when I got home I could look it up. I found it on <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5RhWVlXF0Q&lc=Ugi6PTT5sAhgQXgCoAEC">YouTube: Faraway Places</a>. I wrote this comment: "WJIB (Cambridge, MA, AM740) brought me here. Thanks Bob!" Bob is Bob Bittner, the owner-operator of WJIB.<br /><br />Since that comment from 2016, I learned that WJIB is an ad-free station that is entirely operated by just Bob. He would be the only DJ I'd ever hear on that station. One time I heard him requesting donations just like an NPR station! It was easy to become a fan of his unique and individual style.<br /><br />Fast-forward to last week. A poster on the WJIB Facebook group announced that Bob Bittner had passed away at the age of 73. The group began to fill up with many reminisces from people who knew Bob well, but also many posts of admiration from plain old listeners. I read <a href="https://www.fybush.com/nerw-20230529/">an article by Scott Fybush</a> that revealed the extent of Bob's operation and individuality. <br /><br />Music comes from many places. Nowadays, I pick up songs from Twitter and YouTube and Spotify. Bob represented the older way of discovering music: plucking songs out of the air, as if by magic. Thank you Bob for broadcasting Faraway Places all those years ago. RIP.<br /><br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJO7NxrX6GDyzCjtG-XpfH4PfrV7ezHr_fPzE4hZVQyKvT6ltmkE1Y4ODhgAEfIXdkCC-vRWXcXXVy6-OKSecn32e2Fc25vl3N0g8eRP_VB6w_WORCuDjcFSXXe5BcOqqGukcPWEEA9_GKYHHF3UspetZE2zNzui91DUhHB5WjLL6m9RlWebwdFQ27/s767/wjib-am740.jpg"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJO7NxrX6GDyzCjtG-XpfH4PfrV7ezHr_fPzE4hZVQyKvT6ltmkE1Y4ODhgAEfIXdkCC-vRWXcXXVy6-OKSecn32e2Fc25vl3N0g8eRP_VB6w_WORCuDjcFSXXe5BcOqqGukcPWEEA9_GKYHHF3UspetZE2zNzui91DUhHB5WjLL6m9RlWebwdFQ27/s320/wjib-am740.jpg" /></a><br /><br />rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-1006623513667214522023-04-30T21:32:00.002-04:002023-04-30T21:34:35.258-04:00Jersey City<p>I was in Jersey City, New Jersey a few weeks ago, the city where I grew up. The GPS put me on Rt 440 near Lincoln Park, and though I know these landmarks from my youth, it was barely recognizable. I drove timidly as the GPS guided me through streets that I remembered but could no longer navigate. I eventually reached my great friend <a href="http://www.rickumali.com/ag2004/slides/jmcd-27.html">James McDermott</a>, who took over all the driving duties for my brief stay.</p><p>He and I were going to an all-years grade school reunion at <a href="https://www.facebook.com/astorbarJC/">a Jersey City bar</a>. I knew where the bar was located but this was likely my first time inside. On our way there, he drove by St Aedan's, Journal Square, and a few familiar houses of our past. We went down our long list of mutual acquaintances, taking note of who was here, and who had left. </p><p>He took me to Jersey City's downtown. It was teeming with new buildings and people eating at cafes with outdoor tables. Parking was challenging. Amidst the new I spotted the old: my old high school buildings, the office of my first job, the downtown train station entrance. We went uptown past my old dentist's office building, a rival high school, and <a href="https://www.jclibrary.org/branch/five-corners-branch/">the library</a>.<br /></p><p>I was struck by all the high-rises. Jersey City had been building upwards. Like New York City across the Hudson River, the skyline of Jersey City was transforming to accommodate. It made me think of the little town where I live in Massachusetts: more people coming in, construction seemingly everywhere, though perhaps not on the same scale, and not as towering. </p><p>At the bar, there wasn't anyone from our year, but we socialized as best we could. James called another grade school friend and we were able to catch up briefly. I met a few people who grew up on the street next to where I grew up. I said hello to my sixth grade teacher. We all looked appropriately old. </p><p>In the morning, I followed James back to Rt 440. "You know how to get home from here right?" I said I did. Determined to get out of Jersey City using my wits, I followed my hazy memory towards Rt 3. When I got to Secaucus and <a href="https://www.metlifestadium.com">MetLife Stadium</a> I was at last comfortable. On the drive here I was sure that I had gone over new roads that made the trip faster, if a bit unfamiliar.</p><p>Jersey City is no longer the city of my childhood. It is still a dense and muscular city, filled with a casual roughness, but parts of it now has some of New York City's sleekness. 70s and 80s Jersey City exists only in the memories of those who experienced it. I'm always grateful for my life there, and as I barreled north to New England, I thought: perhaps I shouldn't be such a stranger!</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9NSkRS3IuwolRkyv5iLz4HQyKM2I6vE3rj2Vax-Ewg9sHZRT9RcQDKI_3qvg26aInQm2qphm4zW5bZvGWIx2Ji-nJRG3gv_N5KRj-UYEnBZA7gmiAxMZRAeSeF7x2GgEoB2UgwgJu7SmWlHhKRaSc53zX-YCFr6MeV-KYGtbIenY3QssgvXt3FDd8/s3020/bergen-highland.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3020" data-original-width="3020" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9NSkRS3IuwolRkyv5iLz4HQyKM2I6vE3rj2Vax-Ewg9sHZRT9RcQDKI_3qvg26aInQm2qphm4zW5bZvGWIx2Ji-nJRG3gv_N5KRj-UYEnBZA7gmiAxMZRAeSeF7x2GgEoB2UgwgJu7SmWlHhKRaSc53zX-YCFr6MeV-KYGtbIenY3QssgvXt3FDd8/s320/bergen-highland.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div><span style="font-size: x-small;">Bergen and Highland</span></div></td></tr></tbody></table>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-55893464495169823082023-03-31T20:43:00.001-04:002023-03-31T20:43:38.021-04:00A Fox in Space<p>Last year, <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2011/01/ice-skating-paul-nunes.html">my old college friend Paul</a> pointed me to "A Fox in Space". It's a cartoon in the style of Watership Down (1978), The Plague Dogs (1982), or Iron Giant (1999). Hand drawn and very expressive. However, instead of animals in peril here on earth, "A Fox in Space" is a story about the animals in the Nintendo video game Star Fox.</p><p>After this recommendation, I checked out the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uieM18rZdHY">first episode on YouTube</a> and was amazed. The characters are sharp and speak with Rated R language. The cartoon is highly stylized, yet it feels like it's been around forever because of its hand drawn lines. I wished I played this video game so I could get all the inside jokes and references.</p><p>The first episode came out in April 2016. When Paul told me about this last year, I expected there to be a slew of episodes to watch. Instead, creator Matthew Gafford had yet to release his second episode! Since 2016, he’s been working on his second episode, trying out new animation techniques and drumming up a livelihood on <a href="https://www.patreon.com/AFoxInSpace">his popular Patreon</a>.</p><p>I am always drawn to these creative people with a singular focus. They want only to execute their vision on their terms. I'm amazed at Gafford’s focus and dedication. Seven years! But he has been putting it out there for a long time. Since the dawn of the World Wide Web, he’s been <a href="https://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/16577">creating videos and posting them in far-flung forums</a> under the name of <a href="https://knowyourmeme.com/memes/fredryk-phox">Fredryk Phox</a>.</p><p>Gafford has been open about his process. On his Patreon and in various interviews on YouTube, he's been unwavering in his commitment to release his second episode, but he's been stubborn about doing nearly everything himself. He's a one-person animation studio who is completely self-taught. His skill level is remarkable to me.</p><p>Just last week, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJM1JtZ8lmQ">his long-awaited second episode premiered</a> on YouTube. I fired it up on the big TV and watched it as if it were an Oscar-nominated film. The episode matched the high expectations its long incubation cultivated. It had great animation, great music, great vocal performances and a story that sets up nicely for a great third episode.</p><p>Check it out!</p><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8St3Si7quxgvsSu_3GpjxqM_PUzTkA__KKMuJi4e_qYaPQGPAh3fJdzlDWTszUYemEtvzq2T3wpGHMO29NSDHV_yiDaZtje4QPDKP6TPuHkS2fSUiW3XaBzo84rDrXFks73_b04UjjbymfjdrU_ArpYaapU0OgveoIwSq4oi5Htxo_IpMCwDmLMoB/s1788/a-fox-in-space.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="824" data-original-width="1788" height="183" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8St3Si7quxgvsSu_3GpjxqM_PUzTkA__KKMuJi4e_qYaPQGPAh3fJdzlDWTszUYemEtvzq2T3wpGHMO29NSDHV_yiDaZtje4QPDKP6TPuHkS2fSUiW3XaBzo84rDrXFks73_b04UjjbymfjdrU_ArpYaapU0OgveoIwSq4oi5Htxo_IpMCwDmLMoB/w399-h183/a-fox-in-space.png" width="399" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-24363794769985293432023-02-28T18:29:00.002-05:002023-02-28T18:29:56.416-05:00Doing the Dishes<p>Over the last several years, doing the dishes after dinner has become a welcome part of my day. It wasn't always this way. This task is called a chore for a reason: it's a routine task that is generally unappealing. Put it this way: after dinner, I would definitely prefer to go right to the couch to start a movie. So while I don't look forward to doing the dishes, I've grown to welcome its routine.<br /></p><p>The phrase "doing the dishes" encompasses all the procedures to shut down the kitchen. That means wiping down the stove top and counters, storing leftovers, and putting away pots and pans and other kitchen implements after they've been hand washed. <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2014/03/evaporate-faster.html">I spend time toweling things down</a> when necessary. I admit all this is easier with our <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2019/08/college.html">empty nest</a>.<br /></p><p>Growing up, my family did not have a dishwasher. I was raised to hand wash everything. My two brothers and I took turns weekly, I think, doing this chore. I applied to be a dishwasher at a restaurant near our house, but when they found out I wasn't 18, they backed out. After I got married, I decided that since I couldn't contribute making meals, my contribution would be the dishes. </p><p>Over the past several years I have refined my dish washing techniques, but there is one essential element: near-constant running water when rinsing. My mother chides me on how much water I'm using. I've learned to be more frugal, but I like a lot of water. I run my fingers over what I'm washing, to be sure all the grit is gone.<br /></p><p>Of late, doing the dishes has become calming for me. I find myself doing it deliberately. I go carefully each step of the way. Sometimes, when the oven was used for dinner, I'll finish by holding the wet dish towel over the partially open oven door so that it gets slightly drier. </p><p>I think my change in attitude comes from the chore's finite duration and my sense of accomplishment when I'm done. It's 20 to 30 minutes, though sometimes longer. The result is a kitchen ready to go for tomorrow. When I turn out the light, whatever relaxation happens afterward feels earned.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-cQkKfMllHTyLYblUiVsWMzb3ImwU8LwNP7CyoXfRJR-vWxDIavSj53yMDp0eipqZ5MYVT9abCPiz8SnJj53heqXeRkcmiFJ3S5OdT7grB_mFDc4MSR4HJo3KTuMowfbjHcdmC3liUsXUwifkit8EtpfCFRIiPngyyNMTY9GJEqEGt-MXwrar8Ht6/s640/sink-dishes.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-cQkKfMllHTyLYblUiVsWMzb3ImwU8LwNP7CyoXfRJR-vWxDIavSj53yMDp0eipqZ5MYVT9abCPiz8SnJj53heqXeRkcmiFJ3S5OdT7grB_mFDc4MSR4HJo3KTuMowfbjHcdmC3liUsXUwifkit8EtpfCFRIiPngyyNMTY9GJEqEGt-MXwrar8Ht6/s320/sink-dishes.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-72043373198620017502023-01-31T17:00:00.000-05:002023-01-31T17:00:24.810-05:00My 2022 Books and Movies<p>In 2022, I read <a href="https://www.goodreads.com/user/year_in_books/2022/26960274">28 books (Goodreads)</a> and watched <a href="https://letterboxd.com/rickumali/films/diary/for/2022/">91 movies (Letterboxd)</a>.</p><p>My book reading story for 2022 can be summed up in one title: Infinite Jest. It consumed a month and a half of evenings, and even now I'm still thinking about certain scenes and moments. When I look at the other books I read from last year, the two I would highly recommend are The Descendants (Kaui Hart Hemmings) and Life in Code (Ellen Ullman). I also am grateful to discovered The Gray Man thriller series.<br /></p><p>For movie watching in 2022, the thing that stands out to me is that I rewatched more movies. In 2022, 29 movies were rewatches. Some I have just recently seen (Margin Call, Green Room), but others were from further back (Marathon Man, The Black Hole). I will try to put together a list of "reliable rewatches" inspired by <a href="https://www.theringer.com/the-rewatchables">The Rewatchables podcast</a>. Of the new movies I watched, I most especially recommend "Stillwater" and "The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent".</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc-finWpcpN6KklyGpvNjYWTrC92V74A4VOwQbgjSBE1ha3pysC-NyDogB8MbtFhAC0PvDCj48PkksNIWADz-pPl79ZSYYeP7V5kqFJ0_flm22rP5BuTp14i_SLwLcoBjQnweB59-3zHqovKlrU9nMmsoqrp34IO731c9LJ4K1qKIvkiiQaVjTPKdh/s970/letterboxd-2022.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="519" data-original-width="970" height="171" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgc-finWpcpN6KklyGpvNjYWTrC92V74A4VOwQbgjSBE1ha3pysC-NyDogB8MbtFhAC0PvDCj48PkksNIWADz-pPl79ZSYYeP7V5kqFJ0_flm22rP5BuTp14i_SLwLcoBjQnweB59-3zHqovKlrU9nMmsoqrp34IO731c9LJ4K1qKIvkiiQaVjTPKdh/s320/letterboxd-2022.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Some 2022 movies (Letterboxd)</span><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-2543843766380542192022-12-31T16:42:00.002-05:002022-12-31T16:42:51.570-05:00Wordle<p>Wordle is my favorite new thing from 2022. It's a part of my morning routine to sip coffee and eat cereal while solving this puzzle. I like comparing my solves with my wife. At one point our daughter played the game, and it was fun trying to have the fewest guesses.</p><p>I like Wordle's history: Josh Wardle, a programmer, makes a game to play with close friends and family. He makes a website for this game, which allowed more people to play it. He created a nifty emoji-based scorecard which was easy and fun to share. Within a year his game becomes viral. Frustrated by copy-cat versions of his game, he made a deal to sell his game to The NY Times.</p><p>Like other programmers, I took stabs to solve Wordle <a href="https://gist.github.com/rickumali/8b84fd65602e9ae57a02646b6f06fa8e">programmatically</a>. However, the enduring challenge is solving it with just the clues that emerge from the game itself. The fact that you can only play one game per day is another draw. At first, Wordle allowed every five-letter word to be in the puzzle, but he whittled that down to the most popular 6000 words. At one game per day, we're talking 15 years of puzzles!<br /></p><p>Some Wordle words are fiendishly difficult. Double consonants and double vowels add difficulty. If I can identify the first letter, it's usually easier. Some words are hard enough that I wouldn't finish the game during my breakfast. Instead, I'd let the puzzle linger in my head, turning over the letters until an hour or so later, usually in the bathroom, I'll remember my game and when I open it, I'll instantly solve it. </p><p>Someone on Twitter said that the ideal starting word is TASER, because it contains the most popular letters. My brother said AUDIO is another great starter: you identify the vowels early! In the end, what's worked best for me is to come up with a brand-new five-letter word every morning. Before it was a word from the cereal box (WHOLE, WHEAT, HEART, GRAIN), but nowadays I pick something out of the blue, like my mood for the day: CRANK, FUNNY, SMILE.<br /></p><p>I am competitive with my Wordle score. I always try to get the word before the sixth and last guess. My Wordle statistics show 100s of solves in 4 and 5 guesses and I like to keep it that way. Ultimately it's a guessing game, so I try not to get too down about not getting the word (breaking my streak). Of late I've been posting my scores on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/661519641557916/">a public Facebook group</a>. Look for my posts there if you want to see my recent puzzles!</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhem_qnll36asGP8LZ_lDxlYaIV1JyoJwVWzHqoK5Mfwxs0UigLlspUnoD3N0Yk4JmHFguYolGHSkRD4eLQc4QWrfgaLjzLyBigXbmkgTkNBOT_0eWvIHMjrnORQlAz_5vsV59QoKKS9A_iyiPUcfyPfh2-9lcsrtOMsbfBgJE06wqMBH0Tu7EjrH4s/s1049/primo.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="790" data-original-width="1049" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhem_qnll36asGP8LZ_lDxlYaIV1JyoJwVWzHqoK5Mfwxs0UigLlspUnoD3N0Yk4JmHFguYolGHSkRD4eLQc4QWrfgaLjzLyBigXbmkgTkNBOT_0eWvIHMjrnORQlAz_5vsV59QoKKS9A_iyiPUcfyPfh2-9lcsrtOMsbfBgJE06wqMBH0Tu7EjrH4s/s320/primo.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-70874594887610513322022-11-30T20:56:00.003-05:002022-11-30T20:56:52.576-05:00Started Invisalign<p>A few weeks ago I started Invisalign.</p><p>I used to think that Invisalign was strictly cosmetic, but my regular dentist over many visits persuaded me of its health benefits. Moreover, the crowding in my lower teeth would only get worse over time. She said that it would eventually impact my ability to keep that area clean and healthy. </p><p>I've been aware of my lower teeth crowding for the past several years now. In my normal smile, you only see my upper teeth, but when I show my lower teeth you can see one tooth bent backwards (#25), almost as if it wanted to hide behind the other teeth to its side. <br /></p><p>The orthodontist said that the entire Invisalign procedure would take less than a year. She also said I'd probably need to wear a retainer for the rest of my life. When I finished wearing braces back in high school, I may have received a retainer to wear, but I have no memory of it. However, if I had received a retainer and had worn it regularly, I wouldn't be doing this today.<br /></p><p>The Invisalign aligner was tricky to insert and remove from my teeth, but I lucked out because I only have to wear them on my lower teeth. That said, my random snacking is greatly curtailed: removing them is enough of an irritation.<br /></p><p>Hopefully by next Summer I'll be able to report a successful treatment!<br /></p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuVIu7vkUjJIM-E5_lgl8rd_hKxdo1xSZgFlGCT9OkILdyNNuMxTQIPRkHgs_S0LJY-eo4F0o0Q--0xYAqzwTklaJgDcjoihrLxQTbGjOv724C4yINtdkuZhzdXcHxbO2xjTMtxUXks6vVqf0inb4i1hyJtGtF0-wQqowTVRxCUA3okkuwe5d6Z-3-/s556/invisalign-before-after.png" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="418" data-original-width="556" height="241" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuVIu7vkUjJIM-E5_lgl8rd_hKxdo1xSZgFlGCT9OkILdyNNuMxTQIPRkHgs_S0LJY-eo4F0o0Q--0xYAqzwTklaJgDcjoihrLxQTbGjOv724C4yINtdkuZhzdXcHxbO2xjTMtxUXks6vVqf0inb4i1hyJtGtF0-wQqowTVRxCUA3okkuwe5d6Z-3-/s320/invisalign-before-after.png" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">My Lower Teeth, and Tooth 25</span><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><br /><p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-40966175863448896452022-10-31T20:34:00.003-04:002022-10-31T20:34:22.315-04:00My (Almost) Self-Driving Car<p>Earlier in the year, I bought a new car, a Honda CR-V. It has two remarkable features that make me think the self-driving car is perhaps a bit closer than I thought.</p><p>The first feature is <a href="https://www.hondainfocenter.com/2021/CR-V/Feature-Guide/Interior-Features/Lane-Keeping-Assist-System-LKAS/">LKAS, which stands for Lane Keeping Assist System</a>. It uses a windshield mounted camera to identify lane markers, and if the car drifts from the center, it applies some torque to the steering wheel to guide the driver to adjust the car.</p><p>When I first tested this on the highway, the steering wheel felt tight and somewhat locked. It took a few moments before I realized that LKAS was keeping the car centered by holding the steering wheel appropriately. When I got more comfortable I actually let go of the steering wheel, but after a few seconds the dashboard flashed a "steering required" warning. Still, the feature lets me keep a lighter touch on the steering wheel, making highway driving more bearable.</p><p>The second feature is <a href="https://www.hondainfocenter.com/2021/Civic-Hatchback/Feature-Guide/Interior-Features/Adaptive-Cruise-Control-ACC-with-Low-Speed-Follow/">ACC, which is Adaptive Cruise Control</a>. I've always been a fan of cruise control but in my previous car the cruise control keeps the car at the selected speed. If you needed to slow down because the car ahead of you is going slightly slower, you had to disengage cruise control and drive. With ACC, the Honda modifies the speed based on the car ahead of you. If the car ahead slows down or even stops, the ACC controls the speed such that I never have to touch the brake!</p><p>The ACC feature has made long highway trips much more pleasant for me. In heavy traffic, I experienced the car slowing down to a full stop. After sitting idle, the car acts as if it was at a stop light and shuts off the engine. This is the <a href="https://www.hondainfocenter.com/2022/CR-V/Feature-Guide/Engine-Chassis-Features/Idle-Stop-System/">Idle-Stop feature</a>. When the car ahead moves, I tap the accelerator to take it out of Idle-Stop, and the car resumes driving.</p><p>Both features let me think that the car was driving me, instead of the other way around. Of course it's not entirely hands-free. I still have to navigate and steer! But both features made me think that self-driving cars are getting closer to reality. These two features coupled with <a href="https://www.hondainfocenter.com/2022/CR-V/Feature-Guide/Safety-Features/Collision-Mitigation-Braking-System-CMBS/">anti-collision</a> give me a strong sense of safety. (I only recommend these systems for highway driving only.)</p><p>Each iteration of the "smart car" is about the human helping the computer drive. One day, it'll be fully autonomous!<br /></p><p> </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh94oETs5o87R2LCeMqzZCuOTmF-urdyG6TxzWDu7D4f150h7tDng65fSievBryHmUycAhJOM6Be1-oinJgdRlIy4-Sifm7pTGTjhzkeTHEqq0nrqqSs2_GqV5okzGuGrMjyPwfCwjfWebeZM6wTKmWKUoYXQYEWW91lAo0SrWJ49xn8X602JHQl8dI/s722/lane-keeping-assist.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="458" data-original-width="722" height="203" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh94oETs5o87R2LCeMqzZCuOTmF-urdyG6TxzWDu7D4f150h7tDng65fSievBryHmUycAhJOM6Be1-oinJgdRlIy4-Sifm7pTGTjhzkeTHEqq0nrqqSs2_GqV5okzGuGrMjyPwfCwjfWebeZM6wTKmWKUoYXQYEWW91lAo0SrWJ49xn8X602JHQl8dI/s320/lane-keeping-assist.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-84959387686102063512022-09-30T18:53:00.000-04:002022-09-30T18:53:02.375-04:00Procrastination<p>In a little over three weeks I have to give a presentation. It's about eBooks and how to make them. I haven't started preparing for it however. Since I made the commitment a week ago all I have done was mull over my topic and mildly groused about how I got into this.</p><p>I take solace in the fact that my presentation isn't tomorrow. That's happened before, usually with papers in high school and college. I'd have a <i>some</i> kind of draft but the evening before I'll bang out a final version in a feverish all-nighter that still makes me nervous thinking about it. I had a similar mindset with computer projects but staying up all night writing a program was "fun" to the younger version of myself. </p><p></p>One of the things I learned is the simple power of just taking even the smallest step towards my assignment. I open up PowerPoint and make one or two slides. Just the title page. Maybe part of the agenda. A bullet point. Even a picture. Anything. Just starting is the hardest part but once I'm past the first few sentences it begins to build on itself. It starts to grow and the effort to add to it becomes easier. <p>Putting things off make me think about <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2006/01/process-versus-product.html">process versus product</a>. Maybe I like to think about the product and the reward of making that
product, rather than embracing the process of making that product. Procrastinating doesn't help with either though. Wish me luck!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9KYLiGAoA_7NAQyVPePUndJhYSh3d9FyxMAkNSbi6K5g2mfSLc0IRK2ltFyE3XyEO91Js0TqrS2R7Tyk94nBEC8it9KendXG0RdnWAzVvrIgSBUUE8HtJavNrLlf_YCSY9DBHvg7n0d1oscqKGCuOSb3PU0CyRXji-U1GABU6YH_gPGe-4Wzb5IMf/s600/marina-militare-guy-sie.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="600" data-original-width="599" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9KYLiGAoA_7NAQyVPePUndJhYSh3d9FyxMAkNSbi6K5g2mfSLc0IRK2ltFyE3XyEO91Js0TqrS2R7Tyk94nBEC8it9KendXG0RdnWAzVvrIgSBUUE8HtJavNrLlf_YCSY9DBHvg7n0d1oscqKGCuOSb3PU0CyRXji-U1GABU6YH_gPGe-4Wzb5IMf/s320/marina-militare-guy-sie.jpg" width="319" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><div><span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/guysie/3211153734/">Photo</a> by <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/guysie/">Guy Sie</a></span></div></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-62857798797712558862022-08-31T19:07:00.002-04:002022-08-31T19:07:27.875-04:00Heal Thyself<p>About three weeks ago, I cut my left index finger. I was drying a serrated knife and it slipped out of the towel I was using. The knife was in mid-air and like a fool I thought I would reach out and grab the handle. Instead, the knife cut into my finger then clattered on the floor.</p><p>I didn't feel anything initially, but when I picked up the knife I noticed a clammy wet feeling coming from my left finger. I looked down at it. The knife had sliced a small quarter-inch pad of skin off my finger tip. It looked like those round pieces of paper that you get from using a hole-punch, except the hole-punch didn't make a clean cut. This hung off my finger by a sliver of skin. I was strongly tempted to pull it off, but I thought that would hurt.<br /></p><p>I pressed down on the now bleeding cut. I went to the sink, turned on the faucet and held my finger under running water. The cut wasn't deep. The bleeding slowed down in less than a minute. I turned off the faucet then walked to the medicine cabinet. I dabbed some bacitracin ointment on my cut then put a band-aid on it.</p><p>I somehow became determined not to lose this piece of skin. I knew this meant wearing a band-aid on my finger for a while. The band-aid would get loose and mangy after a few days, since I showered and washed my hands and did the dishes with it on. That first week I changed it every night. Later on, I
kept it on for two and even three days at a time.</p><p>Each time I changed the band-aid, I checked the cut. As the days wore on, the loose piece of skin began to reattach to my finger. The edges of the cut blended into my finger pad. I reapplied ointment with each new band-aid, but towards the end I stopped. I wish I had taken some photos or videos of this healing. It felt miraculous to me.<br /></p><p>A week ago I stopped wearing the band-aid. The cut is gone. My finger's skin is smooth and restored. I am amazed and grateful that my body knows how to heal minor injuries like this.</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsamEXq0U7K0M2qhlbg3t4FofvgMugOHbqxqvtAnn9G4ogkGCWAlUAdDzsrJlhUTCiGihdHrBkmGjMY6adLw0WPvm16L3CfB8tVE4auBlb9XhZkQWuVMFbA5zNpN8efor38FxbypRKthClKZ5TQ6oN9RFTy9gXfDvjF3F4XuEXcOsRra26AnV5Kiu6/s3024/band-aid-finger.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsamEXq0U7K0M2qhlbg3t4FofvgMugOHbqxqvtAnn9G4ogkGCWAlUAdDzsrJlhUTCiGihdHrBkmGjMY6adLw0WPvm16L3CfB8tVE4auBlb9XhZkQWuVMFbA5zNpN8efor38FxbypRKthClKZ5TQ6oN9RFTy9gXfDvjF3F4XuEXcOsRra26AnV5Kiu6/s320/band-aid-finger.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-40778181369949367412022-07-31T19:59:00.001-04:002022-12-30T16:43:12.279-05:00Math and Me<p>I used to pride myself at being excellent in math back in high school. <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2010/10/college-reminisce-bohica.html">That pride quickly disappeared in college</a>, when I started taking truly hard math classes like advanced calculus, differential equations, and graph theory. My math struggles were demoralizing. I'm glad I'm no longer obliged to think about higher math. Plain math is enough for me.</p><p>Some might ask me, since I work in computers: Don't you have to know math to be a programmer? No, you do not. Of course, some programmers do need to be well-versed in math. Some of those include those who program 3-D games, or those who work in scientific simulations. I'm a garden-variety programmer, and I can assure you that math isn't required.<br /></p><p>I thought about my past and present math prowess while looking at some <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/f/faang-stocks.asp">FAANG</a> job listings. I saw this sentence in a Facebook job post:<br /><br />"Facebook's software test engineers can make $131237, which is 32% higher than the national average!"</p><p>The sentence was framed like a math problem from high school. What is the national average? To my surprise, it was a slight struggle to come up with this number. I pulled out pen and paper, defined my variable ("x"), then did some dividing and distributing, trying to recall basic algebra. After a few minutes I came up with the answer: </p><p>131237 / (1 + .32) = 99421.96<br /><br />I threw this math problem at my wife, inviting her to figure out the national average. To my surprise and mild dismay she quickly said "it's around 99,000." She didn't even use a piece of paper! We had a lively conversation about how she got to the answer so quickly. (Her intuition involved calculating 30% of $100,000.)<br /></p><p>As I said, it's a good thing I'm not required to do any math for my work. </p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSQlAbSSjXjxMdWy39ERpcBO1U4DdfIHS2FJcaszaHmt9troEcRflL75OPcbhsvhn7A5A0tGrRaoRhmrqo_Mygw70qDs8QQ3Q1B9AZH7zhlAx1_gG4igrgZXw5MYuCRi73hzyBfvqVwGlTnuwGL9FGiuSRZ8PnT2nfXK_pKDNqyV7nANuGAF31xMz/s799/math.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="477" data-original-width="799" height="191" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaSQlAbSSjXjxMdWy39ERpcBO1U4DdfIHS2FJcaszaHmt9troEcRflL75OPcbhsvhn7A5A0tGrRaoRhmrqo_Mygw70qDs8QQ3Q1B9AZH7zhlAx1_gG4igrgZXw5MYuCRi73hzyBfvqVwGlTnuwGL9FGiuSRZ8PnT2nfXK_pKDNqyV7nANuGAF31xMz/s320/math.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">From <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/internetarchivebookimages/14780831372/" target="_blank">Internet Archive Book Image</a></span><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-575884589431898882022-06-30T21:29:00.002-04:002022-06-30T21:29:34.979-04:00Resolving the Rubik's Cube<p>On a recent trip to my parents, my brother told me he had relearned how to solve <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rubik%27s_Cube">the Rubik's Cube</a>. A few months before this moment he had noticed an unsolved Rubik's Cube in our parents' house. He picked it up and slowly became obsessed with solving it. I could only finish the top layer at the time. Luckily enough our parents kept the small fold-out solution guide for this toy. <br /></p><p>When I first got the cube in the early 1980s I was stymied by how to solve it. The top layer is straightforward but
how do you solve the whole thing? An old friend came over one afternoon and
magically solved it right in front of me. He made believe that he
was guessing and figuring out the moves on his own and I was completely fooled! </p><p>It
didn't take long before I realized you could just buy a <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Simple_Solution_to_Rubik%27s_Cube">book with the solution</a>, which is what I did. After I had memorized the intricate steps for solving it, I began to time myself to see how fast I could do it. Somehow I learned that you could take the cube apart and oil its innards so you could spin the pieces faster. Yes I did this and I'm pretty certain I was able to solve the thing in a minute. All of this played out in the years before high school.<br /></p><p>After seeing my brother solve it last month, I resolved to relearn how to solve it. I bought a Rubik's Cube and found the online solution guide from the cube manufacturer. After an hour of careful reading, I was able to solve my cube. The steps were complicated however, so I looked for an alternative solution. I happily found <a href="https://jperm.net/3x3">jperm.net</a> by Dylan Wang. His page has a simple but slow method to solve the cube and I have recently memorized these steps.</p><p>For the moment I'm just happy being able to solve it again. I like the challenge of solving the cube using a different starting color. I've studied the moves from his website and on a solved cube you can see
how the steps move the target edges or corners to the desired
locations. The cube that I bought seems to spin fast, which is good if I decide to tackle speed cubing. For now, it's enough to have revisited this old obsession. </p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDmoKd5o8zhQyTPuiKFpIYLZHW0Rl4M0mstUe7jNVHAGfBQMQgeorlYGypEDQH4BNlRKIj95PUWNzPt9E5N2gqxfR9J_5Qgw1yfEK8qb4VJDCYoIiROWCTUKsh-SjG3bmVWGvm3dAETTpzhCg700ITt4v1Caa_6VjCayGWlM7ypLwe-RO3dKtOS5EM/s3024/rubiks-cube.JPG" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3024" data-original-width="3024" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDmoKd5o8zhQyTPuiKFpIYLZHW0Rl4M0mstUe7jNVHAGfBQMQgeorlYGypEDQH4BNlRKIj95PUWNzPt9E5N2gqxfR9J_5Qgw1yfEK8qb4VJDCYoIiROWCTUKsh-SjG3bmVWGvm3dAETTpzhCg700ITt4v1Caa_6VjCayGWlM7ypLwe-RO3dKtOS5EM/s320/rubiks-cube.JPG" width="320" /></a></div><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-68708713044309889312022-05-31T20:15:00.000-04:002022-05-31T20:15:00.754-04:00Review: Life in Code<p>I finished <a href="https://us.macmillan.com/author/ellenullman">Ellen Ullman</a>'s book "Life in Code" (2017) last week. It's a marvelous collection of essays primarily concerned with computer programming. Her essays touch on the actual act of programming, but also the impetus of coding: what motivated her to want to learn to program a computer? She also tackles hoary subjects like computer privacy, the gentrification of San Francisco and artificial intellegence. Despite the title, the book is very accessible.<br /><br />Ms Ullman explains her compulsion for coding by relaying her experiences with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portapak" target="_blank">the Sony Portapak</a>. As a college student, she reveled in the Portapak's utility as a video recorder. Released in 1967, the Portapak's size and cost instantly made video production easier and more accessible for the masses. She became an expert in how to use this machine to its fullest. She saw it as analogous to the appearance of the personal computer: a revolution in the old world order. <br /><br />"I learned I had no fear of machines," she declared. Her ability to engage with the Portapak propelled her past videography and directly into a purchase of <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TRS-80">the TRS-80</a>, an early personal computer. From this, she leapt into a computer career that spanned twenty years. She speaks fondly of her computers as "fine machines." She reminisces about talking her way into computer jobs, but she proved a durable ability to work on and solve computer problems.<br /><br />She comments on the taciturn qualities exhibited by most programmers. "People imagine that programmers don't like to talk because they prefer machines to people. This is not completely true. Programmers don't talk because they must not be interrupted." She accurately distinguishes between <a href="https://computersciencewiki.org/index.php/Higher_level_and_lower_level_languages">low-level programmers</a> versus high-level programmers. ("High is bad. If you want any money and prestige, you need to write code that only machines or other programmers understand.")<br /><br />She knocks down the common analogy that computer algorithms are like cookbook recipes. Nothing could be further from the truth and she makes compelling cases for her argument. "For example, try to think of everything you know about something as simple as an invoice. Now try to tell an alien how to prepare one. That is programming." She imagines a hypothetical robot being asked to follow a recipe, and she wondered how we humans would translate for its computer mind the instructions "[sauté] quickly to a nice brown outside and a rosy center."<br /><br />I read this book as an audio book while driving to and from New Jersey (from Boston). Ms Ullman was the narrator. Her voice over my car speakers made the book more personal. As she read her passages about the challenges of a varied programming career, she wove in stories of love, loneliness, her old cat and (yes) making dinner. I marveled at how seamlessly she brought in these subjects. Her writing is exquisite: refined, direct, yet evocative. I highly recommend <b>"Life in Code"</b> and I look forward to reading it again!</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTy2UmRo6c2fTjHjOF5CW3cdJJ2l7YjR-Po9V9STUr0EPMxve3qkqbGUvGrdXm6Hpo9e_c2vYFg0IwZzrf09sKfC2KIi_ad5bbOSTetnSvPGDEGv6IF-x-HWEx2QrxyiUXOKsZEAaiZYvTL1O8tuJ7tzzeb1yXYiAHqZiX-yP34hD5u2TSHxa0Wzo6/s722/life-in-code.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="722" data-original-width="600" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTy2UmRo6c2fTjHjOF5CW3cdJJ2l7YjR-Po9V9STUr0EPMxve3qkqbGUvGrdXm6Hpo9e_c2vYFg0IwZzrf09sKfC2KIi_ad5bbOSTetnSvPGDEGv6IF-x-HWEx2QrxyiUXOKsZEAaiZYvTL1O8tuJ7tzzeb1yXYiAHqZiX-yP34hD5u2TSHxa0Wzo6/s320/life-in-code.png" width="266" /></a></div><br /> <p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-78580251686984308962022-04-30T20:18:00.001-04:002022-04-30T20:18:48.526-04:00Fun Facts About Me<p>At work the other day, we all went around the virtual table to introduce ourselves to a new co-worker. The first few speakers added "fun facts" about themselves, so I knew to be prepared to offer a fun fact about myself, but when it came to my turn, I froze.</p><p>"Well, I'm a parent of a college-aged kid, so most of my fun was before that," I said. The joke fell flat, and then I offered this: I <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2022/02/the-great-binge.html">binged watched five seasons of Homeland</a> last Winter. "Binge watching TV," our host said. "That's always fun!"<br /></p><p>The rest of the meeting went well, but I stewed about the lack of fun facts I could offer. My co-workers offered awesome-sounding fun facts: world traveling, high school athletic accomplishments, career changes, gaming. I had fun facts about myself too, I just couldn't be sure what they were.<br /></p><p>Part of the problem was getting stuck on the word "fun". My ideas of fun have changed. I think I could have gotten past the word 'fun' by replacing it with 'interesting', but then they may as well be <a href="http://blog.rickumali.com/2009/02/25-random-things-about-me.html">random facts</a>. Fun is enjoyment and amusement. That helped crystallize the list: these were all things I enjoyed.<br /></p><p>So, here are some fun facts about me:</p><ol style="text-align: left;"><li>I attended a kids' soccer camp with <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Alberto_Torres">Carlos Alberto</a> as a featured guest (he was a player on Brazil's <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1970_FIFA_World_Cup">1970 World Cup</a> team) (circa 1980s).<br /></li><li>I have done a cross-country road trip across America with my family (1983).<br /></li><li>I did <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/rickumali/8676954/in/album-1737294/">a tandem skydive</a> (1989). It's not something I would do today!</li><li>I met and shook hands with an astronaut during an internship (1989). (Joke: we were on Earth.)<br /></li><li>I met my wife through a personal ad in <a href="https://thephoenix.com/about/">the Boston Phoenix</a> newspaper (1991).</li><li>I played ice hockey with a <a href="http://www.hna.com/">local recreational league</a> (1993-1996), fulfilling a childhood ambition.</li><li>I worked at a company that had <a href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/i/ipo.asp">an IPO</a> (Open Market) (1996).</li><li>I produced a cooking show (two episodes) for <a href="https://acmi.tv/">local community access TV</a> (2001).</li><li>I wrote a version of <a href="https://tech.rickumali.com/tetris/">Tetris in C++</a> (for MS Windows) (2011). Remarkably, it still runs!<br /></li><li>I have <a href="http://www.rickumali.com/reads/ulysses/">read Ulysses</a> (2012).</li></ol><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLKhnAmad9bUj4GTg0TVAzJJVkmmQlVbxRVQz_7QXLp-jR0NT3SLhEB4lFpcZEWQbyzJ1c60crYuaC1um5WT_1D-VRwUDbMzmuzsuslfLeNaGRPXnm8EFGAVTp0yeHM6wwzddKo5kQf-lnrCLwCNueaGKUByT46qSlJgZMdn3hiGfHXj53hv5m65MZ/s640/tandem-skydive.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLKhnAmad9bUj4GTg0TVAzJJVkmmQlVbxRVQz_7QXLp-jR0NT3SLhEB4lFpcZEWQbyzJ1c60crYuaC1um5WT_1D-VRwUDbMzmuzsuslfLeNaGRPXnm8EFGAVTp0yeHM6wwzddKo5kQf-lnrCLwCNueaGKUByT46qSlJgZMdn3hiGfHXj53hv5m65MZ/s320/tandem-skydive.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">Tandem Skydive (credit: <a href="http://www.skydive.tv/">Joe Jennings</a>)</span><br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p><p style="text-align: left;"><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-13398971650565505072022-03-28T08:59:00.000-04:002022-03-28T08:59:59.882-04:00Turning 21<p>I turned 21 on April 6, 1989. I have very few memories of this day but I know that I was a junior in college, and that I definitely had dinner at <a href="https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/1681/">Holmes and Watson in downtown Troy</a>. My favorite meal there was a patty melt with french fries. Of course, now that I was 21, I would be able to wash it down with a nice cold beer.<br /><br />Holmes and Watson had a feature where you could start a World Tour of Beers. You would ask the bartender for a World Tour card, which was a long rectangular card listing all the beers available on tap and bottle. The bartender put your name on the card, and your Tour began. You had one calendar year to drink 50 beers off the card (there were up to 80 beers from many countries). I knew people who completed multiple Tours and I aspired to be like them.<br /><br />The Tour cards were stored in a wooden box with dividers for letters, and people who were serious about the Tour would fish their card out when they entered the restaurant. After you ordered a beer off the card, the bartender would punch a hole next to that beer's listing on the card. Finishing the Tour rewards you with a tee-shirt, a mug and a hat. I'm proud that I finished my Tour before the year ended.<br /><br />I'm pretty certain that I would have had this 21st birthday dinner with Dean Kehoe, a classmate from Massachusetts who indulged my humor and my poor attitude towards school at that time. I relished the opportunity to drink legally, and he and I were regulars at Sutters, a nearby bar that was famous for Thursday night wings, a loud juke box, and cheap beer by the pitcher.<br /><br />Turning 21 is supposed to be the start of adulthood, but I admit that I had a rocky start. I was unhappy in school, and I wanted to tranquilize my anxious state. I wanted to make changes. I wanted to start over. I felt a lot of pressure, but when I look back, it was all self-imposed and self-inflicted. It took a while to gain my bearings and to take the reigns of my adult life.<br /><br />There's a lot the 53-year old me would have told the 21-year old me. I'm not certain I would have listened back then, but I'm listening now.</p><p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaoSEqo48sXrEzcIDh_uJl7vlyLuICKCnRoxwslC_yXE53POdeoCpomodGZow_16I_2APXxxr01arvthxYLB3bwBdBc0PgAxxlJwkfgUIrZSWU40igFYOi9VMhEbfmicm_dsYLwsAhWKJbTfG77uM3G1yh0egfHuRjM7cBX5bUaHD8NNmsHNSIDKgH/s480/rick-college.JPG" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhaoSEqo48sXrEzcIDh_uJl7vlyLuICKCnRoxwslC_yXE53POdeoCpomodGZow_16I_2APXxxr01arvthxYLB3bwBdBc0PgAxxlJwkfgUIrZSWU40igFYOi9VMhEbfmicm_dsYLwsAhWKJbTfG77uM3G1yh0egfHuRjM7cBX5bUaHD8NNmsHNSIDKgH/s320/rick-college.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Me in college<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /> <p></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1221972196326115378.post-52839182754770117022022-02-28T20:02:00.003-05:002022-02-28T20:06:41.467-05:00The Great Binge<p>Late November of 2021, I started a great binge of television. I only read one book in December because I was too busy watching TV. And I liked it!</p><p>I started with <a href="https://www.sho.com/homeland">Homeland, the acclaimed Showtime series</a> about CIA officer Carrie Mathison (actress Claire Danes) and her hunt for terrorists. I was instantly hooked. At the height of my TV watching, I would get through three or even four episodes in a single weekend day. On a weeknight, if I started early enough, I could power through three episodes. Many nights I wanted to gobble up the episodes as the show was so good. I won't spoil it (even though it was released in 2011) but suffice to say I gobbled the first four seasons and was craving more.</p><p>In an attempt to hold off consuming the remaining four seasons of Homeland, I switched to <a href="https://www.netflix.com/title/70178217">House of Cards</a>, the political thriller/drama featuring Frank Underwood (actor Kevin Spacey) on Netflix. Though I didn't watch it at the same feverish pace as Homeland, I certainly devoured it, getting through three seasons by mid-January. I would leaven the darkness of House of Cards by mixing in episodes from the first season of <a href="https://www.disneyplus.com/series/the-mandalorian/3jLIGMDYINqD">The Mandalorian (Disney+)</a>. I would sometimes watch The Madalorian first to warm-up for my evening TV or I would watch it second to cleanse my mind from the lurid action from Cards.</p><p>Unable to stop my rampage of television, I moved over to <a href="https://www.netflix.com/title/80117552">Ozark (Netflix)</a>, the crime drama featuring money launderer Marty Byrde (actor Jason Bateman). I had watched the first season back in 2017, the year it debuted. This time around I had to <a href="https://www.youtube.com/c/ManOfRecaps/featured">watch some recaps</a> to reacquaint myself with all the characters, but it was not difficult to get back into the flow of the series. I really liked the overall arc and direction of Season 2 and I came close to answering "Yes" when Netflix asked if I wanted to watch the next season but I didn't.</p><p>Instead, I started Homeland Season 5. This kept me occupied until late January. <a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/homeland/comments/g8s499/seasons_ranked/">A Reddit post</a> has commenters giving this season low marks in terms of quality but I enjoyed all the plot twists. By this point I realized that I was watching way too much TV so I searched for a spy novel to ease me out of TV mode and into reading mode. (This search lead me to "The Finish: The Killing of Osama bin Laden" by Mark Bowden and "Damascus Station" by David McCloskey.)<br /></p><p>The last series I binged was <a href="https://www.hbo.com/the-wire/season-03/">Season 3 of "The Wire"</a> from HBO. It's a testament to the density of this show that it's very difficult to watch multiple episodes in one evening. I had to read the HBO synopses and during my watching I would often rewind to remind myself who was who, and to read what was said by turning on the captions. The climax of Season 3 devastated me, but like all great endings, there was an inevitability to it that made perfect sense.</p><p>It was fun experiencing <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binge-watching">the modern way people consume television</a>, but I'm done for now. People reading this: recommend me a TV series to watch. I may add it to my future binge list!</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEga0ppoqHJvRjjIAJEYqKfKIQZUNEIbK5mBdlg9KWICYoFvt9XP-KvXlu-jM4HN1Je3kt7KYx-LTVaLnpZF8i5gfB_c6BArYAjvMYk7LfTQgJ6OBBZFiQGzHiz9gAU-hdDHnY7VW1SJSPfr2R9EMeT5jKAFZH-a_oj3-GfjDDGi2jcrolDgGfpdhpfU=s269" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="269" data-original-width="269" height="269" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEga0ppoqHJvRjjIAJEYqKfKIQZUNEIbK5mBdlg9KWICYoFvt9XP-KvXlu-jM4HN1Je3kt7KYx-LTVaLnpZF8i5gfB_c6BArYAjvMYk7LfTQgJ6OBBZFiQGzHiz9gAU-hdDHnY7VW1SJSPfr2R9EMeT5jKAFZH-a_oj3-GfjDDGi2jcrolDgGfpdhpfU" width="269" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">TV Time<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br /><p><br /></p>rickumalihttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15631129573462276625noreply@blogger.com0