Author Archives: Rob MacD

Peter Rukavina may hold a vital link to the recent investigation into the truth behind what authorities are calling the Formosa Tea House Renovations.

I just watched Lost In Translation and it was as great as all the buzz claims it to be.

After I watched it, I started a search to see if I could find out the final line of the movie. Then I realised that I really didn’t want to know what Bob said to Charlotte. I didn’t want to know because, whatever was said, was between them.

I did, however, head over to Metacritic to check out some of the reviews. One numbing review just made me angry and sad. Angry and sad because a person who is, apparently, paid to critique movies can be so damned wrong. I leave you the link to this horribly misguided review, but ask that you don’t click on it.

In this way, by providing a link that nobody clicks, I feel I am somehow protesting his opinion.

A couple of years ago, I performed improv as part of a foursome called 4Play. As the summer run ran its course, it became slightly challenging coming up with interesting and/or fun introductions, night after night.
Today, I came across this intro I wrote for one of our final performances. It was written in English, then, using dictionary.com’s translator, translated into German, then French, and finally, back into English.

If I remember correctly, gadabout Nils Ling was in the audience this night and was spontaneously asked to come up on stage and read the introduction. Never one to extinguish an opportunity in the limelight, he combusted the following:

Very honoured ladies, and very honoured gentlemen, good evening, and make good receipt as 4Play’s “At One Fistful Improv”.
The hour is my pleasure this evening, to introduce the players of the visualization.
Upward first…he turns into, soon, to greener pastures. But, while he is always here, know that he will operate it blue. A set of the applause, for…Od Rashed.
Afterwards…it is each preferential Martian. I legend that because it is the only cultural reference it covers. Go your hands, for…Rob the MacLean.
Up thirdly…its wife could enter at any time with the work, but until this point in time comes, he will place here on the strange faces, fairly for you. Give upward, for… Rainnie Matte.
And in conclusion…the adhesive that keeps each whole…at least, therefore, he says us that its trousers are sticking. Please the tap, for…Rob the MacDonald.

It is it, the people…It is 4Play…It is “Fistful of Improv”.

I particularly like the lines asking for applause. I’ll not translate the whole thing here, but will only say in reference to Matt’s intro, his wife was very much pregnant and her going into labour was a distinct possibility.

For the longest time, I’ve actively disliked ‘urban’ music. It didn’t speak to me, it wasn’t produced for me, it had nothing to offer me. I wasn’t going to expend any effort in trying to understand it, because for the most part, the stuff I heard was stuff I didn’t like.

However, over the past decade in particular, it’s become impossible to ignore the influence that hiphop (for lack of a better all-encompassing descriptor) has had on popular music, and I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that hip hop is, right now, totally dominating the music charts. As I continued to ignore it, I just assumed that this domination was because the general public has such awful taste in music. As proof of that theory, I’ll just say this: I lived through the ’80s.

Then, in the last year in particular, I started to regularly hear hip hop that I actually liked on the radio. Recently, I began to read end-of year ‘best of’ lists from various sources, and many of the critics were lauding hip hop albums and songs that I never heard or heard of. One critic in particular wrote something that stuck with me. She (I think it was a ‘she’ but I sadly don’t remember where I read it) said that not since the era of The Beatles was music being made that is, at the same time, leading the way in artistic expression and innovation, and on top of the popular charts. Hmm, ‘artistic expression and innovation’? In hip hop? Isn’t it just black guys putting down women and talking about gang-shit and jewellery?

Sure, there were some catchy songs, but I began to wonder: What was I missing?

So, I made a decision last week to dive into the genre. The first thing I did was discover *cough*download*cough* a bunch of singles that were on a bunch of ‘best singles of the year’ lists.

So far, I’m really liking what I’ve been listening to. I’ve discovered some fantastic songs that I’m pretty sure will be permanently stored in my library. I doubt that I’ll totally immerse myself into the music, and I’m pretty sure I’ll not succumb to the bling bling of the culture. But I’m kind of excited about the idea that my mind is now open to the notion that hip hop music perhaps does have something to offer to me.

Unlike a born-again Christian who tries to get everyone around him to ‘see the light’, I’ll not inundate you with ‘you gotta hear this’ posts.

However, I will offer this: if you’re like I was, and unsure if all this noise is worth getting into, just listen to one song. Try “Danger! High Voltage!” by Electric Six for starters. If you like that (and I can’t possibly imagine anyone not liking that), then try another.

Oh, and please, start calling me “Rob Boi”

For the longest time, I’ve actively disliked ‘urban’ music. It didn’t speak to me, it wasn’t produced for me, it had nothing to offer me. I wasn’t going to expend any effort in trying to understand it, because for the most part, the stuff I heard was stuff I didn’t like.

However, over the past decade in particular, it’s become impossible to ignore the influence that hiphop (for lack of a better all-encompassing descriptor) has had on popular music, and I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that hip hop is, right now, totally dominating the music charts. As I continued to ignore it, I just assumed that this domination was because the general public has such awful taste in music. As proof of that theory, I’ll just say this: I lived through the ’80s.

Then, in the last year in particular, I started to regularly hear hip hop that I actually liked on the radio. Recently, I began to read end-of year ‘best of’ lists from various sources, and many of the critics were lauding hip hop albums and songs that I never heard or heard of. One critic in particular wrote something that stuck with me. She (I think it was a ‘she’ but I sadly don’t remember where I read it) said that not since the era of The Beatles was music being made that is, at the same time, leading the way in artistic expression and innovation, and on top of the popular charts. Hmm, ‘artistic expression and innovation’? In hip hop? Isn’t it just black guys putting down women and talking about gang-shit and jewellery?

Sure, there were some catchy songs, but I began to wonder: What was I missing?

So, I made a decision last week to dive into the genre. The first thing I did was discover *cough*download*cough* a bunch of singles that were on a bunch of ‘best singles of the year’ lists.

So far, I’m really liking what I’ve been listening to. I’ve discovered some fantastic songs that I’m pretty sure will be permanently stored in my library. I doubt that I’ll totally immerse myself into the music, and I’m pretty sure I’ll not succumb to the bling bling of the culture. But I’m kind of excited about the idea that my mind is now open to the notion that hip hop music perhaps does have something to offer to me.

Unlike a born-again Christian who tries to get everyone around him to ‘see the light’, I’ll not inundate you with ‘you gotta hear this’ posts.

However, I will offer this: if you’re like I was, and unsure if all this noise is worth getting into, just listen to one song. Try “Danger! High Voltage!” by Electric Six for starters. If you like that (and I can’t possibly imagine anyone not liking that), then try another.

Oh, and please, start calling me “Rob Boi”

Apparently, I enjoy Probability Mathematics.

Here’s one that came across yesterday:

You are on a gameshow, and there are three doors. Behind one door, there is a car. Behind the other two are goats. You are asked to pick the door you hope the car is behind. You make your choice.
The host then shows you what’s behind one of the other doors. Naturally, he shows you some goats. Now there are two doors left, one of which is the door you picked. Behind one is the car, behind the other, goats.
The host gives you the option of sticking with the door you picked, or switching your choice to the other door.

Now, it seems as if this chance to switch would be fairly inconsequential. It seems as if, with two doors left, it’s a 50/50 chance that you are right, so what’s the point of switching. Or, what’s the harm of switching?

But it’s not a 50/50 proposition.

In fact, if you do switch, your chance of winning the car increases to 66%.

So, if you’re ever in situations like this, always choose to switch and you’ll be right 2 out of 3 times.

Ever since I first discovered them years and years ago, I had simply assumed that the band was called Camper Van Beethoven, with the “Van” belonging more to “Beethoven” so that it would be Camper (slightest pause) Van+Beethoven.

Yesterday, I had a thought. What if it’s Camper Van Beethoven, with the “Van” belonging more to the “Camper”, so that it would be Camper+Van (slightest pause) Beethoven?

Or perhaps each word should be given equal due?

How will this uncertainty affect my life?

Every weekday, I drive to work and I hear on the radio a selection of jokes from the previous night’s Tonight Show with Jay Leno monologue.

I gotta say that, based on these daily comedy bits, there are some comedy writers out in LA who are making some pretty easy coin.

In terms of quality of content, I kinda equate The Tonight Show with the Air Farce: both are shows designed to appeal to The Greatest Common Denominator and/or grandmothers. Very safe comedy. Read: boring. It’s greatest sin is that it tries to trick us into thinking it’s comedy-on-the-edge. The sad thing is that so many people fall for the trick. It’s not on-the-edge. It’s repetitive and simple and mean. I like comedy that’s mean, but to me, mean comedy must also be smart. Jay Leno jokes are not smart.

People, if ever I fall into a coma, please, oh please get a television and a dvd player sent to my hospital room. Then play the movie The Master of Disguise.

I vow that this will cause me to rise out of my coma, get out of bed, and turn the damn thing off.

…I’d want to be Janeane Garofalo. She’s all right, in my book.