I am not sure if this book was better the first time because it was new to me then, because I read it rather than listened to it, or because of where I was at in life then versus now. But regardless of any of that, it’s still worth reading.

I saw this movie last night with Benjamin and my in-laws. It was beautiful and amazing. The young star actress did a fabulous job. A couple of things I didn’t know about the movie before I saw it: it’s in Spanish with English subtitles and it’s surprisingly, brutally violent at several points. Regardless of that, it’s still very worth watching.

This book was written by one of my design professors at the University of Washington. It seems like a great book.

I thought it was going to a general book about the importance of typography in layout, grids, typeface selection, and so on, but it isn’t. It’s a detailed handbook on understanding letter forms for the purpose of designing a typeface from scratch. It’s very detailed and well illustrated. It’s like taking her typography class, but without the personal interaction and with some additional details added.

As a caveat, I didn’t read it word for word since I’m not interested in a designing a typeface at this point in my life, but I looked through the whole book and read parts. It looks very thorough.

My typography teacher LOVED this book. Most designers I know (that I’ve asked) think it’s a great book. I think one designer even told me that it helped him understand how to discuss design with non-designers. Whatever people.

I got to page 67 in this book, which is nearly half way, and I did it mostly in one sitting (at least half the book is images). After that I couldn’t motivate myself to go back and finish it. While the book contains good, albeit basic, information about typography, I couldn’t take the unending sweeping statements unsupported by anything other than the author’s high opinion of typography. Here’s an example from page 19: “Given the typographic choices available, there is no excuse for producing bad business forms, illegible invoices, awkward applications, ridiculous receipts, or bewildering ballots.”

That’s some cute alliteration and I agree with the sentiment that the user experience should be a top priority, but give me a freakin’ break. As is typography alone creates a good form, application, and ballot. Never mind the actual text, the layout, or any other usability concern or principle of good user experience design. Erik Spiekermann needs to learn that too much overstatement diminishes your credibility and eventually makes what you have to say meaningless. I have an acquaintance like that: everything is always horrible. Then nothing is really horrible.

This is an amazing show – incredibly well done and about as dark as it gets. I don’t think it can possibly maintain the same level of quality and uniqueness in a season season, but I look forward to seeing the attempt nonetheless. Season 2 will be out sometime in 2007.

As the show continues on, it manages to simultaneously be more of the same and yet still be action packed and occasionally additive. This season ebbed and flowed. At times I thought we’d quit and then we’d get into a sub-plot that really sucked me in. I think it would be really different to watch the show one episode a week instead of in batches on DVD. Once a week might actually be better.

This books is all the lyrical wonderfulness that I miss about Barbara Kingsolver (meaning, when will she release another book?!). I am rereading a number of Barbara Kingsolver books, and this is the first. This time I am listening to the audio version.

Barbara Kingsolver narrates this book herself and does a fabulous job (unlike most authors). I was surprised to find her voice softer and quieter than I expected from such a strong woman. She also has a gentle southern accent, which is pleasant and appropriate for this story set in North Carolina.

I relate to the characters in this book so much better now than the first time I read it. I think I must be getting older. :-)

This was a fun, enjoyable movie that entertained me the whole time (despite the fact that it was longer than average). It’s a fluffy, sentimental, unrealistic, chick flick. But if that is what you’re looking for, like me, then you’ll enjoy it.

This is apparently a remake of an Italian movie of the same name. I haven’t seen the original, but the this remake with Zach Braff is really well done. It was more depressing than I expected, but it all comes together in the end and isn’t ultimately a depressing film. Zach Braff is just as good as he was in Garden State (why is he in that dumb show Scrubs anyway?). It also has a good soundtrack. If you rent it on DVD, I recommend checking out the DVD extras. Although I fell sleep watching them, they were actually interesting.

The young protagonist in this story, Oskar Schell, is a wonderful, eccentric character. This is a unique story and one worth reading. I really prefer the portions of this book told from Oskar’s point of view, but the sections told by others do create a more complete, and more interesting, story.