green curry with chat mingkwan

No words will follow. This is it. I make green curry. You don't.

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the groom's march

A few weddings to attend over the next couple of months...this morning, I find myself mentally sifting through ways in which weddings could be more enjoyable - not just for myself, but for everyone.

Consider, as an example, the groom's procession down the aisle. No one has been able to provide me with a satisfactory reason for why his entrance must be so unceremonious. Half of the time, I don't even notice that he's already proceeded to the front. This just isn't fair, the man isn't getting his propers.

I understand that this is the bride's day, but she gets the opportunity to enter last, casually late to the party if you will...dawning a gaudy white gown...wearing a pound of makeup on her face as if she is a television anchor...holding a bouquet of flowers that she'll at some point heave at throngs of single woman. To take it way over the top, there is a theme song in her honor. Can't the groom enjoy at least one of those things?

I've always embraced the idea of a groom selecting music to accompany him as he walks down the aisle. I liken it to a baseball player hand-selecting musical pieces for his short stroll from the on-deck circle to home plate. It gets him and the crowd amped. Why not here? Being the meticulous planner that I am, I have considered my own theme music whenever my own special day comes. There has been an on-going internal battle between the Star Wars and Indiana Jones themes. Lately, I've contemplated adding The Dark Knight score into the consideration set. However, this is a bit more ominous and brooding, and I wouldn't want to conjure up images of The Joker while aforementioned cake-faced bride saunters down the aisle after I have already swooped down wearing a black suit (and cape...and cowl...and utility belt).

This got me thinking further. Maybe the groom's theme needs to be a little more uplifting, perhaps a track to get the congregation all jacked up and ready for the reception. The following are masterfully crafted ideas of my own, but I welcome anyone to hijack these.

As a latch key child from the eighties, the only sensible musical choice is this (you'll need to skip to 1:40 - please be patient and take the time). Everyone would be so engaged and fired up! I encourage posters and spontaneous applause during the more pivotal moments of the wedding ceremony. The groom would stop at various moments down his walking path to point and pose, acknowledge all of the loved ones that have taken the time to be with him on this most blessed of days. Don't we deserve at least that much?

To build upon this theme, it would then make sense for the bride and groom to walk into the reception while the DJ spins this classic cut. Wait a second - when did Macho Man's entrance music become the graduation theme? How did I miss this as a child?

When I commit to something, I like to take it all the way, or least to a point where others say, "You've taken this way too far." To complete this brilliant wedding theme, it would only make sense for the slide show of the bride and groom to be cut off by the music of a villain, and then ultimately he would emerge on the screen or in-person. This villain would undoubtedly be the bride's ex-boyfriend and the music would be "their song" so that she would momentarily recall all of the special moments that she had forcefully shoved out of her memory.

Ex-BF would challenge the new husband to some sort of duel to finally settle who deserves the bride's affection. The groom would quickly recognize the bride's wanton relapse and attack EX-BF. Friends of both the groom and EX-BF would come out of nowhere and brawl on the dance floor. The DJ would then put on his announcer's hat and call the action as it played out...

...

I vaguely remember reading a Bill Simmons article a couple of years ago about how he thought it was a good idea to have a championship belt in sports a la wrestling, replete with feuds like above. Damn him. I'm still taking credit for this idea. Yes, I am an adult.

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hog island - time lapse

I recently learned a neat little trick involving my DSLR and Quicktime Pro. I snapped over 1,800 photos in Hog Island last week to create this 3+ minute video. Many thanks to those in attendance that endured my persistence.

YouTube isn't the ideal format to showcase this, but the video is too long for upload on Flickr or Vimeo. Either way, I'm satisfied with the results from my first attempt at a time lapse sequence.

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