Reading Eugene's recent post about his Shure E3c earphones reminded to post about some new headphones that my brother bought me for Christmas---the Etymotic 6i Isolater Earphones. These earphones have made a huge difference in noise isolation. It almost completely blocks out outside noise. I often wear them to work out at the gym and I don't have to compete with the cheesy dance music piping through the gym's speakers (so that I can listen to my own cheesy dance music..heh heh). The sound is so isolated that my own heartbeat is quite clear through these headphones. I've been very impressed by these headphones so far and am eager to test it out on the airplane to see how it compares to my Bose QuietComfort 2 Noise Cancelling Headphones.

I've been really enjoying my time off. This past week has just been wonderful, sleeping in and doing random errands and organizing around the house. I finally got the bridesmaid dress for my friend Anna's wedding next month at the end of the week---and to my sheer horror, I couldn't fit into it. I was a dumbass and just ordered my regular retail size...when, in reality, I should've ordered a dress size bigger. Ack. I ran to a local seamstress freaking out and they're going to be able to bring it out a few inches, making enough room for my waist to get through, which is really the only issue. My hips are fine and I think my chest will fit as well. [sigh] How horrifying as this dress is custom made and took 3 months to make after ordering. I immediately sent an email out to the other bridesmaids telling them of my ordeal and letting them know about the extra fabric in the inseams in the case they made the same mistake as I did. So far, Christine and Francesca have confirmed their dresses fit..and Julia hasn't seen hers yet but believes it should fit since she ordered a size bigger. I was the only stupid one. [sigh] I'm just praying that when I get the dress back from the seamstress that it fits. I think the extra 2-3 inches the seamstress is going to give me plus some cinching corset and some dieting over the next month will make me fit into this thing. What was I thinking? Ack. (Barbara, if you're reading this, no worries--I'll make this work!!) Of course, this episode prompted me to check my weight---I jumped on the scale and have realized that I've gained a few more pounds. What happened?! I am now the heaviest I have ever been in my life. Depression sinks in. Good thing I've had this time off--I've actually been going to the gym (been 3 times this week) and squeezing some cardio in. This is no good.

I recently checked out a new pizzeria up the street from me called Via Tribunali. Seattle folks, if you haven't tried this out yet, you should. It's only been around since last November and is barely noticeable with its garage-door-like entrance--I've walked by it several times in the past few months and never realized that there was a restaurant there. This isn't just any pizzeria--this is *good* Neopolitan thin-crusted pizza with the freshest of ingredients. Pizza is made in a hot wood-burning oven that literally spits out a pizza in 1 minute. I swear--I watched the pizza guy put a pizza in, watch for a minute, take it out, place it on a plate to be whisked off by the waiter and served fresh. Amazing. Also to note for Seattle folks--the prosciutto, salami and other cured meats used in the appetizers and pizza are from none other than the local Salumi's, another favorite of mine. I've tried 2 pizzas--the Funghi and the Quattro Stagioni, both wonderful tasting. Also to note is the decor inside: tall ceilings, brick walls, neon-quasi-light-fixtures on the wall the emanate cathedral stained glass scenes, candlelight--very Capitol Hill hip. Did I mention that the price isn't bad either? Pizzas are around $10-$15 and can easily be shared. Do that with a yummy prosciutto appetizer and 2 glasses of wine and you've got yourself a decently priced delicious dinner meal.

I leave for Mexico tomorrow to bask in the sun at the Riviera Maya with Sri. I can't wait to just lay around, soaking in the sun, sipping on strawberry daquiris. My plan today: pack, get cat food for Misha, watch 24 and get some sleep in before my 8am flight. Ciao!

vertigo

Monday night, I took Matt to see the U2 concert at Key Arena--his first time seeing them, my second time after the last Elevation Tour. They rocked the house as expected and opened with confetti and spectacular lights on the stage with "City of Blinding Lights". It was a powerful and moving performance, at one point showing the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights up on the monitor. Perhaps the most moving piece was when Bono pulled up a young boy named Jason for "Sometimes You Can't Make It on Your Own". They walked around the elliptical part of the stage, with the boy singing word-by-word along with Bono. Amazing. All in all--awesome show, the energy was in the house, the crowd was rocking. Good going U2.

and now in engadget...

Wow. The day after Gizmodo made a post referencing my brother's sophomore year project, Engadget puts up a post today about his anemone clock. What great coverage! And how bizarre since this has been around for ages---I mean, I put together that website for him back in 2000 I believe. Interesting how in the Engadget comments, people are upset about the fact that his clock reads "9:11", thinking that he's being really disrespectful. In reality, he made this clock in 99 or 2000...so it's just a weird coincidence that he has that read-out. He's been getting contacts like crazy, which is cool...except that it's stressing him out during finals. There are so many hits to his website, it's insane (considering he had a daily average visit rate of around 8 hits--it's soared to almost 1,500 today). Poor guy doesn't know what to do with all this attention: he's been getting tons of emails and questions about where to buy it---it's a freakin' homework assignment from college! He'd have to patent it and then sign a deal to manufacture it...but then, would it be too late? Help? Anyhow, kudos to my little bro'--I'm so proud of him.

Seattle Shake

For the month of May, get 2 cocktails and an appetizer for $15 at the following venues---anyone up for a drink after work? I'm free anytime!

shout out to the bro

Wow. My friend Jed emailed me today to point out a posting made on gizmodo.com today----featuring none other than an anemone clock design project Aaron did years ago. That's pretty cool that he's getting featured like that!

the end is near

Today was my unofficial last working day at Amazon (unofficial since I'm taking vacation and technically wrapping things up later in May). But for all intents and purposes, this was my last day doing actual work stuff. I had a meeting, ate lunch with the boss, finished up a transition doc and packed up a big chunk of stuff. I put a bunch of the free CDs I had gotten in my first year working for the Music team out on a door desk, free for others to take. Also found a very large Programming Perl book that I never really used and gave it to the lead developer on my current project as good luck. I started throwing away old documents but couldn't bring myself yet to throwing away my very first notebook, where I had jotted down what cpp and datecat meant and what neighborhoods I should live in. It's kind of a surreal feeling. It hasn't really sunk in...more so because I still have my laptop, pager, parking pass, badge and everything that makes me an Amazonian. I'm really looking forward to these next few weeks to sleep, organize, hang out with my cat and get my personal life back in tip top shape. I booked the whole trip to Mexico today with Sri--11 more days before that begins. Can't wait. What will I do Monday morning?

Dance Dance Revolution Extreme. Watch (.wmv) this kid dance a prefect round at one of the fastest levels while juggling 3 pins at once. Impressive.