Another step closer!

~36 minutes. That's all it took for my committee to discuss my diss. After they were done, I thought they'd just finish their first round of suggestions/comments, and were just preparing me for the slaughterhouse, but they were done. Like, totally done. And everything that we discussed was awesome. All valid and aimed to make my diss better. I need to do a couple edits, but then it's off. Off to the externals and in six weeks the big meeting!
I can't believe this is happening. And it's pretty awesome.
I told you this would be a roller coaster ride!

The important thing...

Same task as last year, new batch of students. Here are a couple:

The important thing about measurement is that it puts things in perspective.
The speed in which life pulls you from an infant to a grown-up,
How deeply you can fall in love,
How much weight you lost to fit in the prom dress,
How time slips with a tick and a tock of a clock,
How the years of your life are not as infinite as kilometers.
But the important thing about measurement is that it puts things in perspective.

***************

The important thing about a cone is that it holds ice cream.
It has a circular base and a pointy top.
Its Surface Area is (pie x radius) x (radius + height).
Its volume is 1/3 Base x height.
It is a very complicated geometric figure.
But the most important thing about a cone is that it holds ice cream.

***************

...I'm absolutely exhausted, but the important thing about life is that I love what I do. 

Just keep swimming...

I should have posted an excited note that same day, but I was in a rush to live my life and forgot.
At 6.02pm EST on Monday night, I sent off Round 3 to the committee. I think my page counts have been document totals as opposed to a page count without the extras before and after. Anyway, I'm now at 224. Being one page off from Round 2 means that the end is near. Well, so does sending it to the committee.
BLAM-O!

Round 2

223 pages.
At least now I'm within an acceptable range. Who knows about the quality of the document itself, though.
I don't think I'll merrily skip to the TTC stop tonight. I'm looking forward to fresh air, but it's a busy week so I should probably grab a cab and get a smidge more sleep than I otherwise would.

Happy New Year!

Soon, we will end 2012 in the Gregorian calendar.
It's been another action-packed year, and I expect 2013 to be more of the same. I suppose I wouldn't want it any other way.
For all you gents heading out for a nice soiree tonight, here's a fun little video to help you keep things cool. =)

Completely drained

My goodness. There's just so much going on right now. Lots of mundane stuff. Lots of awesome stuff. Lots of tragic stuff. Personally, professionally, and within the community. I'm surviving, and I know my stresses are nothing compared to what some other folks are going through, so although I try to keep a perspective on things, it's me, so I am going through my stress patterns.
Anyway, hopefully at some point I will tend to this blog a little bit more regularly.

For now, I just want to post two things that helped get me through today.
1. Damn You Auto Correct! (Some of these elicited uncontrollable laughter. I was definitely needed.)
2. City Rising (I love my city, and watching this video was timed perfectly because I needed a little zen.)

CeeLo Green "All I Need Is Love (ft. The Muppets)"

I've got the shakes

I'm not sure if my hands are shaky because I haven't eaten anything substantial in over 12 hours or because I just finished a pseudo-draft of my thesis.
I wish I had a Meredith so that I could have a much needed 30 second dance party.
(Current thesis page count: 412 - uh oh.)

Ain't no SBB, but it's still A-OK

See, if you say SBB properly, it'll actually rhyme. =) I'm blogging as I sit on the train. I've only taken the train once before in Canada.
You know what, it's not that bad. The seats are comfy, you get free internet, there's a refreshments trolley that goes by. It would be better if it ran more frequently, but the price isn't atrocious. Oh and of course there isn't that lovely welcome announcement. I can still hear it in my head.
I mean, I don't really need to go anywhere that taking the train would make sense, but for the times that it does, I think I might consider it more often in the future.

If only I had twitter (and an iGadget)

Leaving work at 11pm. Fall air hitting my face. This song would’ve been the cherry on top: tinyurl.com/ybjgxj8 #GameOn #It'sThesisTime

Last skating video post for the day...

Yeah, so word on the street is that Kurt's going to reprise his Singing in the Rain program for his comeback competition. Awesome.

Another goodie...

I just can't resist posting another classic...

Still awesome

Need a break from whatever it is that you're doing? Watch either/both of these programs by Kurt Browning. Truly amazing.
Apparently he's going to be making a comeback as there's a Pro competition scheduled to happen where they've got some big names competing. Kurt's thrown his name into the ring and since I don't follow the Stars on Ice circuit, I don't really know what he's been up to. Not since the glory days when all of those shows of Champions on Ice, Stars on Ice, _____ on Ice, etc. and then all of those Pro competitions ruled the air waves have I really known what all of these pro skaters were doing, how active they are, and the calibre of their programs.
Anyway, these two programs are quite awesome, so I hope you enjoy them.

TIFF'12 roundup

It's taken me awhile, but I've finally posted about all of the films that I saw during TIFF'12.

I ended up watching nine films in total. Here they are in the order that I saw them:
1. The We and the I
2. How to Make Money Selling Drugs
3. Argo
4. The Central Park Five
5. Liverpool
6. The Thieves
7. Venus and Serena
8. 7 Boxes
9. 9.79*

None of my films were award winners. In fact, none of the films that made my short list won an award. Of the films that I saw, I'd say my favorite was The Thieves. 7 Boxes was also quite entertaining as was Argo.
As per usual, I had a great time at the festival. It was nice to see a couple celebs, watch some great films, see more people out and about, feel like part of the action, and all that good stuff. It's kind of funny that I barely watch any movies during the year, and then within the span of a week I'll see so many.

9.79*

The final film of my TIFF'12 experience was 9.79* (official website here, trailer here).
I like documentaries, so this was an easy pick for me. I also seem to like documentaries about sports and people, so I guess that further explains this pick. I guess over time, it's becoming a little bit more predictable to me which types of films I'll gravitate towards.
This film is about drug testing, the 100-metre sprint event form the 1988 Seoul Olympics, and the athletes (and other stakeholders) involved in the race. Filmmaker, Daniel Gordon, was able to get in contact with every single man who ran that race and find out their perspective of things.
Since I didn't follow the whole story from that event and I definitely don't know much about track and field and substances used to support these athletes, I think I went into this film with a pretty open mind and of course, you could argue that the filmmaker's story is biased, but I definitely left the film thinking about so many issues that were brought up in the film. The film is skewed in sympathy towards Ben Johnson and leaves you quite skeptical of Carl Lewis.
Those who are interested in what's currently happening with Lance Armstrong, may also be interested in this film. And also with the allegations of the Chinese swimmer from the 2012 London Olympics too.
The film itself was good. It didn't blow me away, but it was a solid, yet run of the mill documentary. I don't think I would pay to see it on the big screen, but it's perfect for a TV special. In fact, since ESPN is behind it, I'm sure it will appear on TV at some point.
Watch it if you get a chance. 

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

7 Boxes

I had this movie on my list of films to see, but by the time I went online to make my package selections, the screening was sold out. It was actually the first time I wasn't able to get a film that I'd selected as part of my 10-pack. Anyway, I decided to take the risk and get a voucher, hoping that I would be able to rush the film. I hadn't been unsuccessful with TIFF rush lines, but I guess this movie broke the streak. I was just a couple people back from the front of the line when they cut off the rush line and was really bummed. I tend to get relatively sulky when things don't go my way. In the end, it was probably good that I had the evening off because I remember being so tired that day. I had a screening in the morning. And then I went home and took a power nap which lasted too long and then I was groggy. And then I had another commitment I had to attend to early in the evening which I ran late for, and then I had to leave earlier than I wanted to try to catch the film...and then I didn't even get in. And that was annoying, but then I went home and went to bed early. Definitely needed.
Anyway, luckily, that wasn't the last screening of the film, so I still had one more chance to watch the film. Clearly, I wouldn't be writing this post if I didn't get in, and I'm glad I did because it was a great film. Unfortunately, there wasn't anyone representing the film in attendance, so there wasn't a Q&A, but it was still a packed theatre. Obviously, the screening was rush and people were scrambling to find seats when they entered the theatre.
7 Boxes (trailer here) is a film from Paraguay about a teenage delivery boy getting caught in the middle of something. Suspense, mystery and a lot of chase scenes ensue. I think there was some funny moments too, but I'm sure they would have been even funnier if I understood Spanish and/or knew Paraguayan culture. I think there were a lot of layers to this film. I wanted to see it because I think heist/suspense/thriller kinds of films, but this also had a little bit of a whimsical quality to it too.
Anyway, I'm also writing this post so far after the fact that I don't have it in me to write with any more detail. All I can say is that it's a great film and a classic TIFF movie in that it's a film that I probably would never get a chance to watch otherwise. If you manage to get an opportunity to see this film, I would highly recommend it.

 - picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

Venus and Serena

I like learning about athletes and I like learning about celebrities, so Venus and Serena was an obvious pick for me.
I watched the final screening of this film and was quite disappointed with the turnout. The attendance was sparse at best. I wonder what the attendance was like at the previous screenings. The first screening was Premium, after all, so I think they expected a good turnout.
The film followed Venus and Serena Williams during 2011 while providing history about the childhood of the girls and their careers leading up until present day (in fact, there was mention of her recent win at the US Open, so I wonder when they actually officially finished this film).
I don't follow tennis very carefully nor do I know much about the Williams sisters, but I do know that they are successful players and entrepreneurs and come from a tight-knit family. I remember hearing something about their parents being very active members of their careers, but I didn't know much more than that.
I liked the film. After a tiring week, I needed a light movie, and this was perfect. We got to see Serena and Venus as people. We saw them in good times and in bad. And as a whole, I have very positive feelings towards the sisters and their family. I think this film would be perfect for TV and hope that it does get picked up.
Unfortunately, there was no one in attendance representing the film, so I couldn't learn more about the film, but I didn't really feel the need to. I thought this film, while not mindblowing, was a nice, neat package. And it looked well produced as well. There must have been some serious backing behind this film. I mean, obviously, they would need the support of Venus and Serena and their family, but this in itself is probably a big deal based on how strong the sisters and their team is. And in having their support, they probably were able to get others involved as well. For example, the fact that Wyclef Jean was in charge of the music probably as something. And he composed original songs for the film too.
So, good film. Nothing crazy, but worth watching if you happen to come across it. It's always interesting to find out about successful individuals and the dedication and conscious decision-making that goes into such success.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

The Thieves

After reading TIFF's description of The Theives (official website here, trailer here), I knew I wanted to see this film. I basically walked into the theatre thinking that I was going to watch an Asian version of Ocean's Eleven and that was an awesome thought to me.
And it was an awesome movie!!!
Here's part of the TIFF description:
"Although he’s still smarting from when Macao took off with almost seventy kilos of stolen gold after their last job, Popie is ready to let bygones be bygones. He assembles his gang of usual suspects: a "wire team" consisting of the sexy and hilariously self-absorbed Yenicall and her hopelessly infatuated partner Zampano; con artist Chewingum; and lock-picking expert (and Macao’s former flame) Pepsee. Macao meanwhile brings his own motley crew into the mix: the crude and volatile Andrew, seasoned pro Chen, safe-cracker Julie, and point man Jonny. The job: to steal a $20-million yellow diamond called the "Tear of the Sun" from a high-security casino. The elaborate plan requires each member of the team to play a crucial role. But as the stakes rise ever higher and everyone tries to work their own angle —everything that can go wrong will go wrong."
Though stuck to reading subtitles (my one complaint, well two, is that 1. I don't understand Korean as I KNOW that I missed out on some humour as a result and 2. there was some atrocious Chinese being spoken in the film which really made me cringe) I still laughed out loud many times, I love "mission impossible"-type films and this one had plenty of twists and turns to it. I had no idea how the film was going to end and part of the way through I started getting confused who was doing what and who was on who's side. Oh yeah, and action scenes to add to my excitement too!
This was the director, Choi Dong-hoon's, first time at TIFF and I knew even before the screening started that it would be good. There were tons of Koreans attending and they were buzzing. We were told that the film has been number one at the box office in Korean for the past little while, so that's always encouraging. I attended the first screening of the film which happened to be at the Ryerson theatre and although it's a large theatre, it was rush. Like, seriously rush. As a ticket holder, I got there with time to spare and when I joined the line it had wrapped around to bloody Gould and Victoria. That's bananas! The director seemed pretty excited to be there and had a great enthusiasm and humour as he addressed the audience.
My oh my, this film is awesome. So incredibly awesome. People, you need to watch this film.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

Liverpool

I knew I had to watch Liverpool (official website here, bande-announce ici, trailer here). A French film, a TIFF description that references Amelie, a shy romance, elements of a suspense/thriller...c'mon!
The beginning was promising. Cute, quirky, and catchy. And the heroine was just as how I imagined she would be. But I think that's what led to the film's somewhat demise for me, personally. Right from the word go, I was comparing the film to my most favorite film, Amelie. And keep in mind, that I never go out on a limb to claim that something is my favorite, so if I am willing to stake claim to Amelie, it must mean that I like it a lot.
You know what? Now, a couple days after the fact and watching the trailer one more time, I have to say, it probably was a great film. I think it just moved too quickly. Reflecting on the characters, the story, the music, the mood and everything else, it can only sum up to a great film. But I think, at the time, I had such high expectations, that it just couldn't compete. At the time, I felt that things in the film happened too quickly. Basically there were too many leaps in the story and that I felt like many scenes were left out. The film was too perfect. I mean, films are supposed to be unrealistic at times, but this one made a couple too many leaps too quickly. I wanted more lead up to certain events. I wanted more tension and back story. things just unfolded too quickly and too effortlessly.
I guess this is a film that I'd like to watch again to find out if maybe it's better than I remember it being because as I watch the trailer, I feel bad that I walked out of that theatre wanting more. I mean, even if you don't understand French perfectly well (because dialogue is never the same in subtitles), you can get a sense from the trailer that there's a certain whimsy to this film.
There were so many elements to the film that make it interesting. The inclusion of social media, a moral and global message...and all those other things I said before. And some good one-liners and jokes too! Sigh, it's almost like I'm disappointed in myself for not having thoroughly enjoyed it.
Director, Manon Briand, was so enthusiastic and gave off such a joyful energy as she introduced the film and answered questions during the Q&A. It wasn't really a Q&A where I got deeper insight into the film, but I always give bonus points for Q&As.
Darn it. I want to watch it again.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net

The Central Park Five

From the TIFF description:
"In 1989, five black and Latino teenagers from New York City were arrested and charged for brutally attacking and raping a white female jogger in Central Park. News media swarmed the case, calling it "the crime of the century." Journalists popularized the term "wilding" to describe a gang activity of randomly assaulting victims. Politicians, pundits and the public rushed to a judgment that carried a barely veiled undertone of racial and class prejudice. Convicted of the crime, the five teenagers spent between five to thirteen years in prison until, in 2002, the shocking news broke: they were innocent. Another man confessed to the crime, with DNA evidence to support his claim."
The story of The Central Park Five (trailer here) was new to me but how can you not be intrigued? I thought this documentary did a great job of discussing an event that happened in the past using stock footage, narrative recounts of people who were part of the story and other elements to bring this story to life. Hearing The Central Park Five retell their versions of what happened that night, the events that happened immediately afterwards and of the years following was quite powerful. It's such an unfortunate thing that happened to them and not really knowing anything about police protocol and how they're been trained and the tactics they employ to try to get at the truth of the matter, I found myself wondering what I would have done if I was in their shoes? Why did some pieces of evidence seem to not weigh into the outcome of the case? What kind of pressures were the police under? What was the media's role?
The film did provide a good overview of what happened and how the five men were impacted by it. And I think that was the point of the film. But I did wonder why the rape victim wasn't involved involved in the film (because it seemed that the filmmakers attempted to include everyone else that was a stakeholder in the case), and why wasn't the role of the media examined more closely (because the description and the filmmakers seemed to elude to the fact that the media did have a big role in the outcome).
So here's why I like films that have a Q&A. Ken Burns (whom I know nothing about), Sarah Burns and David McMahon (the three directors) were in attendance and shared that indeed, this film is about the five gentlemen and really getting at their stories. Additionally, they decided not to include the voice of Trisha Meili (the victim) in this film because she, in fact, has no memory of the events that happened that night. And her understanding of the case is what she can constructed based on the information that was available to her. And keep in mind, this is information that until 2002 was quite faulty. And although, Ms. Meili has written a book about her experiences, the filmmakers still felt uncomfortable asking her to go back to those events again. So that's issue one covered. The second issue about the media wasn't answered to my satisfaction. I'm not sure that the filmmakers intentionally skirted the question about why it wasn't featured more, they just didn't seem to answer the question as it was intended. They merely emphasized that the media did have a significant role to play. Perhaps, they wanted to pick just one are of focus in this film, and that was the lives and perspectives of the five men.
One of the Central Park Five, Raymond Santana, was at the screening, and received a standing ovation from the audience. It sounds like he is doing well, but I wonder (as they do) what life would have been like had these events not happened. In the film, many of the men spoke of the transition that they faced after getting out of prison. Of course, I can't really compare it to anything in my life, but my experience of moving back to Toronto after living, working, and breathing my life in Switzerland was an adjustment of sorts. Of course, the shock and challenges that I faced were minuscule in comparison, so I just think, if something as small as what I went through made enough of an impact on me to affect some of the things that I did and felt and experienced and how I went about my life soon after returning to Toronto, it must have been quite, I don't know what, for them. Yes, I know that they are completely different situations and as I type, I'm thinking that my experience is so meaningless that I should go back and delete it, but I'm the type of person who like to connect things together and attempt to relate experiences to each other and this post really is just a free write, so that's that. But the point is, a sudden change of someone reality is something interesting to consider. And I guess it happens all the time and and people learn to adjust, but often people get support beforehand or after the change (for example, I think of folks having a baby for the first time, and everyone I know went to some sort of parenting class beforehand and even had support groups once they became parents). I just wonder how much support these gentlemen had.
Anyway, I thought the film was quite good because it gave me a lot of issues to think about. Immediately after the screening, I remember thinking that I enjoyed this film, but didn't love it. But I think it's one of those things that if you got back to it, or just think about it a little bit more, you just start thinking about a lot of different things. I know some educators in the audience were talking about including this in their teaching, and of course I can see it being done in so many ways. If you do get a chance to watch the film, I would definitely recommend it.

- picture courtesy of www.tiff.net