journal.wiredreflexes.com

A Challenging Week

by Dennis•July 6, 2018July 24, 2018•0•Journal

This week started with my birthday, but unfortunately I didn’t get a chance to really celebrate or enjoy it. At work, two new developers started on the day of my birthday, and it was my intention to get them settled as quickly as possible so that they could hit the ground running. In the past, we’ve had people start who didn’t have the welcoming or productive start they deserved. So I wanted to do better. I think I succeeded, and after having a short review of the week with them individually today, it seems they feel the same way.

It meant a lot of scrambling, running around and fixing things. It also means I didn’t settle in any rhythm this week, which usually leaves me tired. Jim is arriving shortly, and tomorrow I’ll have the chance to really celebrate my birthday. Hopefully that will soothe some of the stress of the previous couple of days.

Football Fake Injuries…

by Dennis•July 3, 2018•0•Journal

…are the fucking worst. Jesus, how can you live with yourself if you pretend you were murdered and you are flopping around like you’re having an epileptic fit. How can you look your friends in the eye afterwards? How can you look yourself in the eye afterwards, you fucking fraud!!?!?!

Birthday Celebration

by Dennis•July 2, 2018July 2, 2018•0•Journal

Today was my birthday. Yesterday as well as the day before yesterday, colleagues had their birthday, too. So when I got to work, and the others had brought a shit-ton of birthday cake, I was really glad that I managed to convince my friend Alina (of Solid Cocktails fame) to make me a bunch of boozy bonbons. They cake came in the morning, and I treated everyone to the bonbons in the late afternoon. They were very well received.

My work is pretty challenging at the moment because I had two new team members start today. This meant I had to welcome them, guide them, set them up and get them started on a project. All new managerial tasks for me. Luckily, both guys were excellent sports and they hit the ground running. Really happy.

Last night, Joasia and I ate at Gebroeders Hartering again, which was absolutely lovely. Today, lots of people messaged me, so I felt quite fortunate. Jody sang for me, Moulsari sang for me, Eva, Scott, Lucie and Minna sang for me. Made me feel loved.

Later this week Jim is going to come over, and we’re planning to have some birthday drinks at House Bar. Thomas, who runs the bar, agreed to make me two different birthday punches for the people I’ve invited. A group of us are going to have dinner at The Beefsteak Club beforehand, and hopefully we’ll do something fun afterwards. Maybe Club NYX. Would be fun.

Ocean’s Eight

by Dennis•July 1, 2018November 26, 2018•0•Films

Yesterday evening I watched Ocean’s Eight and I thought it was great (within the context of fun heist-comedy films.) It is without a shadow of a doubt better than Ocean’s Twelve and Ocean’s Thirteen, but not quite as polished as Ocean’s Eleven.

Sandra Bullock carried the film well. Blanchett as a tough, punk-rock chick; yes, please. Sarah Paulson was a delight. Rihanna had everything she needed to be the cool hacker. Awkwafina was perfectly quirky and I totally fell in love with her. Helena Bonham Carter as a troubled fashion designer was a great fit. And Anne Hathaway stole the show as the smart-than-she-looks socialite and film star who just wants to have friends.

The plot was perfectly ridiculous but immensely entertaining, and if I really haven’t find something to complain about, it’s that the magnet-lock subplot could have been a interesting narrative element, if it hadn’t be resolved twenty seconds later by asking someone’s little sister for a solution. Perhaps it was simply done to send the message that young, smart girls can be STEM-geniuses, but then still I would have loved to see that exposed more. (And I’m just going to ignore the giant “oh, the necklace must have fallen off my neck while I was running for the bathroom” plot-hole. Wasn’t it supposed to have a magnetic lock!?)

The recent trend of redoing a bro-film format (Ghostbusters, The Hangover, e.g.) with an all-female cast film (Ghostbusters, Rough Night, e.g.) hasn’t been faring very well. The all-female Ghostbusters was so awful even the amazing Kate McKinnon couldn’t save it. But this film made it work very well and in a way that felt like it wasn’t just a derivation of an already done format.