FREE and the Crucible's fire truck -- how can you pass that up?

Super-easy to get to the de Young from downtown: K, L, or M (outbound) to Forest Hill Station, and then hop on the 44 bus -- it drops you off right at the de Young.

Don't forget about the Asian Art Museum first free Sunday every month. June 1st is the next free Sunday. Art you glad we have all this free access to our museums?

La cum s-a prezentat sezonul 2007-2008 din postura de mare favorit pleaca, in opinia mea, 'The Jester from Leicester' Mark Selby, si cand fac aceasta afirmatie nu iau in calcul faptul ca este favoritul meu, ci ma gandesc la titlul castigat de Mark la Wembley si mai ales la finala de la Welsh Open, cand a revenit formidabil invingandu-l dramatic pe O'Sullivan.

Dupa ce s-a dat in spectacol la ultima editie a Openului Chinei, Ronnie revine in fata propriilor suporteri, intalnind in primul tur, coincidenta :D , chiar un reprezentant al Chinei 'mult iubite'. Desi are momente si momente si poate crea surpriza neplacuta oricand, Ronnie ramane un mare jucator care poate oricand castiga orice turneu cu o minima conditie, sa vrea si sa fie serios la masa de joc.

Altfel, ramane de urmarit scotianul Stephen Hendry care debuteaza in fata tanarului nord-irlandez Mark Allen, septuplul campion mondial avand un sezon cu adevarat dezamagitor. Poate va reusi sa se redreseze la Crucible. Un alt jucator de top in acest sezon si care poate spera cu incredere la titlul mondial este Shaun Murphy, insusi numarul unu mondial in acest moment, tabloul de la Crucible anuntand un posibil sfert de finala de foc intre 'The Magician' si 'The Jester from Leicester'.

Cam atat despre Campionatul Mondial de la Crucible. Va astept sa discutam mai multe pe FORUM si de asemenea va propun spre citire sectiunea de Snooker a ziarului Onlinesport, unde veti gasi in fiecare zi cele mai noi informatii, rezultate si cronici ale Campionatului Mondial. Aici in blog voi reveni in noaptea de 5 spre 6 mai cu o relatare a finalei.

Programul primului tur:

Ken Doherty (Irl) v Liang Wenbo (Chn)

John Higgins (Sco) v Matthew Stevens (T.Gal)

Ali Carter (Ang) v Barry Hawkins (Ang)

Ding Junhui (Chn) v Marco Fu (HK)

Mark Selby (Ang) v Mark King (Ang)

Peter Ebdon (Ang) v Jamie Cope (Ang)

Neil Robertson (Aus) v Nigel Bond (Ang)

Steve Davis (Ang) v Stuart Bingham (Ang)

Ryan Day (T.Gal) v Michael Judge (Ang)

Ronnie O'Sullivan (Ang) v Liu Chuang (Chn)

Mark Williams (T.Gal) v Mark Davis (Ang)

Graeme Dott (Sco) v Joe Perry (Ang)

Shaun Murphy (Ang) v Dave Harold (Ang)

Stephen Lee (Ang) v Joe Swail (NI)

Stephen Hendry (Sco) v Mark Allen (NI)

Stephen Maguire (Sco) v Anthony Hamilton (Ang)

Fosti campioni:

2007 J Higgins 18-13 M Selby
2006 G Dott 18-14 P Ebdon
2005 S Murphy 18-16 M Stevens
2004 R O'Sullivan 18-8 G Dott
2003 M Williams 18-16 K Doherty
2002 P Ebdon 18-17 S Hendry
2001 R O'Sullivan 18-14 J Higgins
2000 M Williams 18-16 M Stevens

1999 S Hendry 18-11 M Williams
1998 J Higgins 18-12 K Doherty
1997 K Doherty 18-12 S Hendry
1996 S Hendry 18-12 P Ebdon
1995 S Hendry 18-9 N Bond
1994 S Hendry 18-17 J White
1993 S Hendry 18-5 J White
1992 S Hendry 18-14 J White
1991 J Parrott 18-11 J White
1990 S Hendry 18-12 J White

1989 S Davis 18-3 J Parrott
1988 S Davis 18-11 T Griffiths
1987 S Davis 18-14 J Johnson
1986 J Johnson 18-12 S Davis
1985 D Taylor 18-17 S Davis
1984 S Davis 18-16 J White
1983 S Davis 18-6 C Thorburn
1982 A Higgins 18-15 R Reardon
1981 S Davis 18-12 D Mountjoy
1980 C Thorburn 18-16 A Higgins

1979 T Griffiths 24-16 D Taylor
1978 R Reardon 25-18 P Mans
1977 J Spencer 25-21 C Thorburn

So the Slam season started with a bang for the quizzing enthusiasts. As I didn’t qualify I am ready with a set of excuses as always: A friend / teammate ditched us at the last moment, last minute team changes, the usual 2 Tam / Madras questions and some major #$*& up in the prelims. I missed a painting question. :(

Although I had a creditable 5th place at the Kurukshetra quiz the previous day (akin to the Queen's Club Championship before the Big W) the disappointment for not qualifying was immense and was dealt with a vengeance at Duchess (a favourite Restaurant of mine) near the Music Academy. God bless the poor crabs and the shrimps. Among new things tried category I had the Hungarian Goulash there and said no to the beer for once. It was breathtaking.

I have decided (purely for self pacification) that from now on I shall make all my Chennai trips with the sole purpose of trying out new food joints. All those people who think Chennai doesn’t have much to offer in terms of food, please fire your holiday planner. Some of my best dining experiences have been in Chennai. Shall soon write about a new dining experience in Chennai. Quizzing would be a not so distant second.

From now on my team name for all Chennai quizzes shall be known as “We are here for the Idly”.

This week's Illustration Friday theme is "Superstition", so I began a study for the cover of a hypothetical graphic novel of The Crucible. It started as business card sketches, but this is a study executed in pencil and marker in my Moleskine. I'm not sure the costume is from the right era, but I am fond of the poppet and may make one.

This is a thumbnail image of the projected cover (the reason for the flared skirt). I'd like to try finishing this off, some day, with a woodcut effect and era-appropriate lettering.

Tata Crucible Campus- International Edition

Quizmaster: Pickbrain

Date: 24 October 2007

Review:

Winners: Anirban Dattagupta & Bhavya Khanna Prelims

1) Skoda founded in which country?

Ans: Czech Republic

2) Office, Home & X. Which company, who's outlets are a place to chill out, advertises like this?

Ans: X = Starbucks

3) Who's outlets are called Scoop Shops?

Ans: Ben & Jerry's

4) Body & Soul - Book by whom?

Ans: Anita Roddick 5) Logo of Ericcson 6) Pic of JRD Tata

7) First airline to commercially fly A380?

Ans: Singapore Airlines

8) It celebrated its 500th anniversary recently. Its also called Frankfurter. What?

Ans: Hot Dog

9) What present day product was inspired by the lipstick applicator?

Ans: Glue Stick

10) Invented by Russian Monks as an antiseptic 500 years ago?

Ans: Vodka

11) Place in Singapore translated in Malay means "Abode of Peace". What?

Ans: Sentosa

12) Pic of Sam Walton's book (Made in America). Which company?

Ans: Walmart

13) Bloomsbury, Scholastic ….. etc own rights to the publishing of this series of books in different countries. Which?

Ans: Harry Potter

14) Patty Stonesifier is CEO of which NGO?

Ans: Bill & Melinda Gates foundation

15) Pic of 6 thinking hats. Who comes to mind?

Ans: Edward De Bono

Feedback and comments to: Rohit.s.nair@gmail.com

The crucible of life was used by the gods to populate the world with living things. The world was a peaceful haven until one of the gods took the crucible for himself and began to create beings which were ugly, vile, and evil. An argument arose over the creation of these creatures and a great battle ensued among the gods. Seeing the terrifying power that the crucible had when used for evil, the gods forged a magical hammer with which they intended to destroy the crucible. The evil one was subdued but it required the united effort of all five other gods, such is the power of evil. Even in light of his own defeat and the threat of his own destruction, the evil one refused out of spite to reveal where he had hidden the crucible. With no other choice, they destroyed the evil one intending to then find the crucible on their own. But unbeknown even to them, the gods were all connected having come from a single source. And death begets death... so their power faded over time and they too disappeared from the earth... and the crucible was lost and became merely a legend.

The story begins several centuries later. A power-hungry general fights for his king to win glory for himself but secretly curses the king and the fact that he himself was not born with royal blood. His men serve him but only because he serves the king. Without the king, he is nothing. In one of his foreign campaigns he stumbles upon the hiding place of the crucible of life. Using the designs left by the evil one, he discovers its secret power and how with it he can create beings without wills of their own; beings that will obey him and him alone. With it too he discovers the power of dark magic. While the evil one can no longer exist in his own right, the power of his spirit can be channeled by those who know how to invoke it. And so he builds an army intending to take over the world...

There are five different types of good magic, one pertaining to each of the good gods. People usually have an affinity for one type of magic or another. Incidentally some have an affinity for two or even three types of good magic but none have been found to have an affinity for all five. Only one who can harness the power of all five gods will be able to defeat the minion of the evil one and wield the magical hammer, or so the legend goes. But the hammer, the only thing which can save the world, has been lost. Like the crucible, the memory of it had faded over time.

A humble farmer boy finds a hammer in an ancient cave. In his hands it feels light and yet powerful. He inquires with the elders as to its origin and discovers that it is the legendary hammer. What surprises them even more is that the boy is able to wield it while no one else can bear its weight. It turns out that this unlikely boy has an affinity for all types of magic, but he is entirely untrained. He will have to travel to five different lands to learn the magic of the good gods so that he can harness them all together to defeat the evil general. His quest is long and perilous and he must travel alone. Will he be able to complete his mission and save the world?

That's pretty much it. I'm not going to go to the trouble to fill in the details just yet. There's plenty of time for that. In the meantime I have a lot of code to write. My future posts will deal more with the technical details of the framework: things that will limit the types of games that a designer will be able to make. In fact, in one of my next posts I'll explain how the framework will fail to achieve one of my initial goals (i.e. to be able to re-implement Crono Trigger). I have good reasons! Lots more to come...

Between 1996 and 1998, Aaron Cohen would learn Hebrew and Arabic; become an expert in urban counterterror warfare, the martial art of Krav Maga, and undercover operations; and participate in dozens of life-or-death missions. He would infiltrate a Hamas wedding to seize a wanted terrorist and pose as an American journalist to set a trap for one of the financiers behind the Dizengoff Massacre, taking him down in a brutal, hand-to-hand struggle. A propulsive, gripping read, Cohen's story is a rare, fly-on-the-wall view into the shadowy world of "black ops" that redefines invincible strength, true danger, and inviolable security.

Order Brotherhood of Warriors from Amazon for $9.99

Don't have Amazon Kindle? You can always purchase it from here
Or if you prefer to read the Print editions instead, you can get it from here

Other Kindle Books of Interest
Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes of SEAL Team 10
America Alone: The End of the World As We Know It
House to House
In the Hot Zone

From the Crucible: I cannot speak but i am doubted, every moment judged as though i come into a court, when i come into this house.

Not merely a 147 to defeat Williams.  Not merely a semi-final drubbing of Hendry, arguably the greatest player (at least for consistency and longevity) of all time.  Not merely a flash of what's possible.  A demonstration of amplitude and, for Ronnie, fortitude.

Well done, Rocket.  Welcome to the new standard of play everyone else.

Deşi a greşit enorm în primele jocuri, O'Sullivan şi-a revenit rapid şi a reuşit să câştige 11 jocuri la rând în faţa unui septuplu campion mondial.

Astfel, dacă la un moment dat Hendry conducea cu 4 - 1, după 16 jocuri tabela din teatrul "Crucible" arăta un uluitor 4 - 12.

Apus de soare pentru un mare campion, poate cel mai mare pe care l-a avut snookerul. Dar şi un mare om, valoare pe care Ronnie nu o poate revendica.

Unul dintre cele 8 break-uri maxime reuşite de Stephen Hendry într-un turneu oficial:

CM de Snooker, semifinale: Ronnie O’Sullivan - Stephen Hendry 17 - 6 Alister Carter - Joe Perry 17 - 15

The house I'm moving to doesn't have any teaware to save its life. And even if it did, well, these are MY cups and pots, carefully selected and tested over time. They each have their own origins.

(Not all are pictured)

- Little blue and white china pot - I actually used this as a toy teaset throughout my childhood. I'm leaving the cups that came with because they're useless and tiny, but the pot is a good size.

- Yixing with white glaze decanter - I don't use this very often. In the past, I've used it as an open-steep pot, but I learned that it's a decanter for gongfu serving style, and using it for such will step up the quality of some of my teas. So I'm still taking it with me.

- pair of green and brown porcelain cups - I ganked these from my mom, who had gotten them as a gift from a houseguest. She doesn't use little teacups anyways, she uses mugs. They're made by a women's cooperative in the Philippines, and they really are especially beautiful pieces of teaware. The glaze on the bottom 2/3rds of the cup is actually made with ash from Mt. Pinatubo (remember that massive eruption in the early 90's? We looked at ash in the sky from my school window in California). The clay underneath is a pleasing white porcelain.

- blue-green ceramic mug with strainer & lid, japanese character - I have no idea what that japanese character means. Maybe someday someone will tell me. This was one of my sister's Christmas gifts to me a few years ago. It's one of my most practical pieces of teaware, and I use it a lot.

- small nubbly dark iron pot - given to me by the guy who introduced me to how great tea really is. Simran was his name, and I don't know him anymore. I dated him briefly; he was older, used to be Sikh. Did some avant-garde vocal music, installation art and painting. How did I meet him? Oh goodness, now I remember!

I met him in the city at a Tim Barsky show (a Jewish storyteller who also beatboxes and plays flute). I was wearing my Crucible volunteer shirt, and was volunteering at Epic Arts at the time. He asked me about the Crucible, we started talking, and I went over to his house and we had tea.

He told me that at the last Burning Man, he'd carried a mobile tea unit - a big suitcase that held a propane stove, pots, cups, and myriad varieties of tea. There was a really bitter tea he had me try that was almost as bad as bitter melon; he said one woman there actually asked for it by name, and for her, the bitterer the better.

The store he bought the pot from informed him that it was actually an inkpot. He said, "Not anymore!" I use this pot for blacks and puers exclusively; it brews one little cup at a time.

- borosilicate glass owl pot - IMO, borosilicate glass is the supreme queen of all teapot materials, practically speaking. For all-around qualities and everyday use, the best. Heat retention and transmission; durability; and you can see the tea! I think every tea lover should have at least one borosilicate pot. The beauty of a glass pot is all in the form. Christianna has one of these too, we both bought ours at Far Leaves. We used to meet there to study, when she was in Berkeley and I was at Mills.

Uhhh... maybe I'll continue this later. There are a few more pieces that deserve to be named, but I'm tired of writing about teacups, and I'm sure you've stopped reading by now.

Attachment, on a scale of 1-10 (not at all - it’s part of my being): 9

Take It or Leave It? Take It

Ultimele runde de calificare pentru acest turneu au loc in aceste zile , 32 de jucatori luptandu-se pentru a participa alaturi de primii 16 din clasamentul general in prima etapa a Campionatului Mondial de Snooker care va avea loc in aprilie .

Iar campionul mondial din 1997 a declarat ca anul acesta este cel mai intens dintre toate care si le poate aminti :"Cred ca anul acesta Campionatul Mondial va fi foarte interesant . Cred ca singurul favorit este Ronnie O`Sullivan , dar nu poti stii de astazi cum se va prezenta , cu chef sau nu . Pe langa el , cred ca mai exista 8 sau 10 candidati la titlul de campion , asa ca va fi foarte interesant de vazut . Asta va ajuta managerii fiindca le va creste valoarea jucatorilor situati mai in josul listei . Momentan ma gandesc la Openul Chinez , dupa care toate privirile vor fi atintite inspre turneul din Sheffield , care va fi cireasa de pe tort .

In ultima perioada am cam intrat in forma asa ca voi ajunge la campionat cu mai multa incredere in mine , iar atunci orice se poate intampla . Cred ca toti jucatorii agreaza mai mult jocurile lungi fiindca apuci sa iti intri in mana si sa corectezi eventualele greseli , insa la cel mai bun din 9 e un sprint scurt si e foarte , foarte greu ."

"Nu exista nici un motiv pentru care nu as putea deveni campion mondial ." a declarat tanarul din Leicester care este in cea mai buna forma a carierei dupa ce si-a asigurat Mastersul la Wembley in luna care a trecut .

"Tocmai am batut in finala probabil cel mai bun jucator de snooker din lume , dupa ce am avut o revenire spectaculoasa . De ce sa nu fiu increzator in ceea ce priveste Campionatul Mondial de la Crucible ? "

In alta ordine de idei , Selby ocupa in prezent locul 4 in clasamentul mondial dupa victoria impotriva lui O`Sullivan in finala Welsh Open-ului . Cu punctele acumulate a urcat un loc , fata de locul 5 de acum 2 luni , in timp ce O`Sullivan s-a distantat la 3000 de puncte in fata ocupantului locului 2 , Sean Murphy , cu doar doua turnee ramase : China Open intre 22/3-29/3 si Campionatul Mondial intre 18/4-03/5 .

In January of 1692, Reverend Parris' daughter Elizabeth, age 9, and niece Abigail Williams, age 11, started having "fits." They screamed, threw things, uttered peculiar sounds and contorted themselves into strange positions, and a local doctor blamed the supernatural. Another girl, Ann Putnam, age 11, experienced similar episodes. On February 29, under pressure from magistrates Jonathan Corwin and John Hathorne, the girls blamed three women for afflicting them: Tituba, the Parris' Caribbean slave; Sarah Good, a homeless beggar; and Sarah Osborne, an elderly impoverished woman.

Link