The Diamond Age

This has been the first Neal Stephenson novel I finished but it won’t be the last. I tried to read Stephenson’s Snow Crash previously but I wasn’t able to get into it before I had to return it.  Now that I’ve read The Diamond Age I certainly want to give it another try. This is an excellent read about a girl and her primer in a future where diamond windows and airships made lighter than air with nano vacuum suspension are easily created. Where nano engineers can design almost anything imaginable and make them available, at a cost, through matter compilers fed by pure streams of molecules. The new economy is based on ideas and where old national lines (although they still try to rear themselves up) are a thing of the past. So without countries what defines which team you’re in? Stephenson suggests that phyles are formed based on common economic goals and principles. The Neo-Victorians, controlling the largest sources for the matter compilers and having some of the best nano engineers is at the top of the stack. In this story, Stephenson chooses to focus on the Vickys as well as their interactions with other phyles.
A Vicky engineer (John Percival Hackworth is one of the best) is commissioned to create a primer for a girl. This book bonds to its reader and transforms itself into the best learning device for her. It is designed to not only pass on knowledge but also to ensure that the reader has ‘an interesting life’. But Hackworth’s desire for his own daughter to have the same opportunity in life, leads him to create an illegal copy of the primer. This copy falls into the hands of the main character Nell, a young, poor and innocent thete (someone without a phyle). The story then revolves around the chain of events this unanticipated act causes.
This book was nearly impossible for me to put down. The ideas were very interesting and the main characters, especially Nell, were incredibly engaging.
This is not an easy book to get through but great works of art often incur a price. This art is very highly recommended and worth it.

Halo, Assassin’s Creed and Modern Warfare 2

I prefer a video game with a story: otherwise what carries you through? To achieve a certain skill level? Bragging rights? Not all that interested. But games with a good story are just so addicting!
So we have purchased all of the Halo series over time but in the past week or so I actually went through the entire campaigns for 1, 2, 3 and ODST at the normal level. One night I stayed up past 4 finishing off the last. The online games can be fun (especially Halo 1 on the PC and ODST Firefight) but I’m not as drawn to these as much as to the storied campaign. I really like the history of the Forerunners, the Covenant and Master Chief/Cortana: it’s engaging and interesting with lots of twists. One day you’re fighting the Covenant and then the Flood and then you are allied with the Covenant against Prophets or the Flood or both. And in ODST there’s a lot of back and forth movement in the time line which grew on me, even though I was annoyed by it at first.
Again, it’s the story in Assassin’s Creed that drew me in. It is fascinating and involves both the future and the past in an interesting way. I like the fact that it’s a Canadian game and that it merges in real history as part of the experience. I also love the climbing and leap of faith abilities of Altaïr. I haven’t tried the newly released sequel yet but I’ve still got to finish the first one.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is quite a different animal. Although I have tried other COD titles they haven’t proved to be as interesting to me as the Halo series. What can I say, I’m a sci-fi fan and writer. In this case it was the hype that attracted me even though I haven’t tried Modern Warfare 1 (I didn’t even know the story line carries on from it until after). I’ll admit I was interested in what was drawing so much interest.  Activision has created an interesting game though and it is quite different in that your characters actually die in the game. I don’t mean they die because your skill and luck failed and you were killed, I mean that the characters in the story line who you have assumed actually die. And by betrayal. It left quite a cold taste in my mouth. I don’t like all the violence in shoot ‘em up games like these normally but Modern Warfare 2 really brings it over the top. In the end I find it, surprisingly, an anti-war game. The graphics are so realistic, stunning and blah blah blah that I felt dirtied by the act of playing. But the story made it even more so. After this game I find it even more amazing that mankind has been addicted to war for so long.  I’m glad I went through with the experience of doing the Modern Warfare 2 campaign but I’d rather be playing Halo or Assassin’s Creed.
In the end of this marathon of playing these games I am glad to get it out of my system. I’ll stay play, occasionally, but I need to get more done of a creative nature!

The Good Prince

Bill Willingham and Mark Buckingham collaborate (with the rest of the Fables comics illustrating team) in this 2007-2008 story of how Flycatcher, the Frog Prince, tries to redeem meaning into the murder of his family. You can buy or borrow the collection of 10 issues (60-69) bound together as The Good Prince (2008). The tale of the Frog Prince turning into the King of Haven is a wonderful story of sacrifice, redemption and love with beautiful illustrations and interesting twists.
For those who don’t have any experience with Fables,
it is a comic book series by Bill Willingham that brings many fables (like Snow White, the Big Bad Wolf, Hansel and Gretel, Little Boy Blue, the Frog Prince, etc) to life in our world and time in alternative and unexpected ways.
This particular book is a good second book to introduce you to Willingham’s world. I’d say the first ‘book’ would be the excellent 1001 Nights of Snowfall which introduces many of the main characters and the idea using Scheherazade’s story as a vehicle.
I enjoy all the Fables and recommend them highly if you enjoy good, adult graphic novels.

The Strangest Dream

Joseph Rotblat’s life’s work after leaving the Manhattan Project (the only invited scientist to do so) was nuclear disarmament and this NFB documentary centres on this strangest of dreams. The formation and directing of the Pugwash Conferences in 1957 provided a powerful and revolutionary (in the best way) forum to counter the insanity of nuclear arms build-up. To honour this organization, Rotblat donated his 1995 Nobel Peace Prize medal to the town of Pugwash, Nova Scotia where it all started.
In this post cold war world it is sometimes difficult to see just how close to nuclear annihilation we came. The odds against Hiroshima and Nagasaki being the only uses of atomics as a weapon were astonishing small considering the fact that there were 65,000 active weapons in 1985, the most insane point. Through the tireless efforts of groups like Pugwash these have decreased to the current level of about 8,000 active nuclear warheads and 23,300 non-active.
One of the scary points brought up in the film is that the building of a nuclear weapon is now just a technical matter. It can be accomplished by an engineer or technician now. Most of what you need in the way of ‘plans’ can be found online. I wonder if this is true, however. I hope not. Surely some watchdogs at the Pentagon or MI6 or the EU or somewhere are searching the internet for that kind of information.
We had a panel discussion following the film. It was revealed that current discussion between the U.S. under the Obama administration and the Russian government may result in the reduction of their nuclear arsenals (they have 95% of these weapons) to 1,500 each. This order of magnitude miracle would truly be a large step forward in achieving Rotblat’s dream and is reason enough, IMHO, for Obama being awarded the Nobel Peace prize too.
For those who want to learn more about nuclear disarmament or about the life of a true humanist and exceptional physicist this movie is highly recommended.

Toxic Baby

Having a baby in this age is nearly always a joy filled thing but the very complexity of our lives makes it a frightening experience. Small worries about your baby’s environment can become big ones as you are suddenly thrust into the role of protector in the crazy 21st century. Industrial Disease by Dire Straits or System Of A Down’s Toxicity lodges in my mind. Karen and I have three kids and we can relate: it rips out our heart when any of them are in any kind of danger or pain.
This documentary is director Min Sook Lee’s personal exploration of a short list of what she’s had to come to terms with as a new parent. Water, food, lead pain, PVC, bisphenol A, baby formula, disposable diapers, lions, tigers and bears! Oh my! So many things to worry about. Sook Lee took part in a panel with other mothers after the showing and stressed, as she alluded in the documentary, that you have to be gentle with yourself and decide which level on the trip down the rabbit hole you and your spouse are most comfortable at. ‘Green may be the new black’ but just because the label has green on it doesn’t it mean it’s really necessary. That should be the first question you ask yourself: do I need this gizmo or that technique?
Some choices are really anti-establishment: like the crazy act of breast feeding that so many of our parents were brainwashed into avoiding. But who profits from baby formula? Or from vaccination for that matter? Or disposable diapers? All of these are considered luxuries in most of the world’s populations. But these conveniences have many negative consequences for your child and the environment.
So what are the alternatives? Breast feeding is obvious, of course. But vaccination? There is much controversy to be had here. People used to gather for the ancient tradition of pox parties where children were willingly infected with chicken pox and other illnesses. In the documentary we get to attend a modern day pox party. This seems just so bizarre but it makes a lot of sense. And diapers? Well there’s the obvious cloth diaper option but Sook Lee showed me something new. Actually, it’s another old tradition but doesn’t have even have a name: it’s now called ‘elimination communication‘. This is potty training that starts incredibly early: even as soon as three months. The idea is to take the baby to the toilet and let it pee or poop there. An incredible number of diapers in the dump and discomfort will be prevented by this.
Kids cannot be raised in a bubble and there are so many things outside your control. But there are those things you can take control of when looking for non-toxic parenting methods. Some of these may leave your friends and family looking at you strangely (or even hurtfully because they didn’t put in the effort) but you have to be true to yourself and your child.
This 46 minute film is highly recommended for parents.

Feeling like a loser?

When you start feeling depressed here’s something that is guaranteed to pick you up. You can look back on your life and realize that right at the beginning you were the one who succeeded against almost impossible odds. You, and most likely you only, won a marathon race to your mother’s egg among at least 50 million other highly competitive sperm. You certainly weren’t a loser that day. Your chances to win a major lottery are often much better: something like 1 in 14 million. Feel better?

Intangible Asset Number 82

This documentary is Australian jazz giant Simon Barker’s journey to discover the influences of a Korean drummer/Shaman named Kim Seok-Chul. Director Emma Franz takes us, sensitively, along. Simon is not allowed by his contact, Kim Dong-Won, to see Seok-Chul right away. There is a lot of resistance there although Simon doesn’t know, at first, why. Is the master drummer, who is regarded as such a national treasure by his country that he is Intangible Asset Number 82, being protected from the foreigner? Is he not worthy?
The truth was that Kim Seok-Chul was very ill and in hospital but also that Dong-Won wasn’t sure it would be right to present Simon to him. Would the Australian drummer actually understand the honour? Would he be worthy? So, as a process, Dong-Won goes on a trip with Simon to visit other musical Shamen. The singer Bae Il-Dong is one. This is a singer who lived in the wilderness in a hut he built beside a waterfall for seven years, singing up to 18 hours a day. Learning to out-sing the noise of the falls. Il-Dong considers the mountain as yin and the valley as yang with the waterfall the holy place where yin and yang meet. His is a powerful, raw voice that seems too big and too much noise for the Western ear. But he sings pure nature and without fear or ego. I would love to hear him in concert.
Simon also learns about drumming with his entire body. To begin throwing himself down on the ground as if in mourning to learn to let go and relax into the music. And to listen to his own heart for true rhythm.
Near the end, Seok-Chul has left the hospital and Simon does get the chance to visit with the master three days before he dies. We, as voyeuristic companions, get a rare glimpse into some of the final hours of a man revered by his family and society. It is impressive and touching.
I learned, in the end, a great deal about South Korea and music in this wonderful and powerful documentary. I whole-heartedly recommend it to anyone!
This was the first of the five documentaries I saw during the 2009 Guelph Festival of Moving Media.

The Art of Time on Abbey Road

The family and I attended the September 26 Art of Time Ensemble performance of Abbey Road at the Enwave Theatre at Harbourfront Centre in Toronto. This was the 40th anniversary of the release of the Beatles’ album and each song from it were tackled by different Arrangers and a very talented group of singers and musicians. You can see pictures from it here.

So why did I wait for over a month to report on Andrew Burashko’s homage to the Beatles that night? It was an awesome concert and it affected me incredibly: likely the best concert I’ve been to for years. But I lack the language to describe what happened musically and emotionally that night. It was amazing.

The singers were:

• Steven Page
• Sarah Slean
• Andy Maize
• Alejandra Ribera
• Kevin Hearn
• Raine Maida
• John Southworth

The Arrangers were:

• Shelly Berger
• Gavin Bryars
• Robert Carli
• Kevin Fox
• Jonathan Goldsmith
• Jim McGrath
• Roberto Occhipinti
• Dan Parr
• Cameron Wilson

The Musicians were:

• Andrew Burashko / Piano
• Benjamin Bowman / Violin
• Greg Campbell / Viola
• John Johnson / Sax
• Amy Laing / Cello
• Rachel Mercer / Cello
• Joe Phillips / Bass
• Doug Perry / Viola
• Rob Piltch / Guitar
• Rick Sacks / Percussion
• Stephen Sitarski / Violin
• Michael White / Trumpet

Wine Tasting Tour in Niagara

This past Saturday, Karen and I celebrated her birthday by going on a wine-tasting tour in the Niagara area. It was organized by the University Catholic Community.
Accompanied by two ukulele’s we sang our way to Niagara-on-the-Lake and walked around for an hour and a half. Then it was off to the picnic tables at the Niagara River Whirlpool for a delicious lunch from Angelino’s (one of the best places to buy food in Guelph).

We were off to Chateau des Charmes following that for a tour of a vineyard and the facility. As a group we tasted:

• the 2007 Riesling VQA
• a 2007 Rosé
• the 2007 Gamay Droit (St. Davids Bench Vineyard VQA)

I also tried the 2007 Gewurztraminer (St.Davids Bench Vineyard VQA) at the tasting bar.
I purchased a bottle of the 2007 Riesling VQA.

Then we went to Joseph’s Estate Wines where we had another tour. It was interesting to see the similarities and differences between the two wineries, each headed by experienced wine makers and innovators in their industry. As a group we tasted:

• 2006 Gewürztraminer
• 2007 Caroline Rosé VQA
• 2004 Pinot Noir
• 2000 Vidal Icewine VQA

At the tasting bar later I also tried:

• 2006 Merlot Reserve VQA
• 2004 Shiraz VQA
• Vintage Country Red
• Katherine’s Perry Sherry

I purchased a bottle of each of these: Olde Town Port, Olde Niagara Cream Sherry and 2007 Caroline Rosé VQA as well as some grape skin flour.
I learned a lot at each but I enjoyed the Joseph’s tour more since they were more generous with their tasting and tasting bar costs and they allowed us to actually taste grapes on the vine and touch things like putting our hands through the surprisingly dry crushed skins and seed.

Following this we embarked to Niagara (with only a brief stop at a Pickard Peanuts store) and took a stroll along the walkway near the lip of the Falls. Then up to the revolving restaurant in the Skylon Tower for supper. And there was more music on the way home.

The total trip took a little less than 13 hours but what a wonderful day! Something for Karen and I to remember for a long time.

Ender’s Game

I have finally read Orson Scott Card’s brilliant novel Ender’s Game which is the first book in the Ender’s series.  This was originally a shorter novelette but was reworked into a full length novel by Card.  It is about a young boy named Ender who is a long hoped for military genius on a future Earth.  He is force trained to become the tool that will save mankind from an alien menace.  But Ender is, in the end, his own man or boy.  A product of his handlers but not them; the book has an incredibly surprising finish. 
I enjoyed it very much. It is intensely psychological and, like many of the best examples of fiction writers, Card dwells strongly in the territory of human relationships. That’s what makes Ender so interesting. In the end, Ender is more important than even Earth leaders think. The fate of more than just human’s is involved.
I definitely want to read more in the series.
Highly recommended.