I agree with your take on the Harry Potter exhibit. As a Potter fan, it's pretty cool to actually see things like Alan Rickman's Snape outfit and Harry and Ron's four-poster beds. (And who knew Helena Bonham Carter is so tiny?) A lot of classic British wit apparently went into the props, especially the schoolbooks, with their variety of typefaces and design styles from different decades. (Gilderoy Lockhart's books, appropriately enough, had gilt lettering and looked like cheap coffee table editions from Barnes and Noble.) And fans of British art and literature will enjoy the paintings, most of which are knockoffs of famous paintings. There's one of Wordsworth with a wizard's cap on, and I saw Spencer, Byron, Queen Elizabeth I and quite a few other notables.
But, yeah, the wands were a ripoff. For $45, they better perform actual spells, preferably ones that work on cats. (Fermatus Brattus!) Too bad: I would have gotten one had they been a reasonable price -- and, with all the kids visiting, I bet the shop would have sold out in no time.
Nope, I didn't make the playoffs. Guess we won't be naming our first kid Dallas after all. :)
Amen. The dominant message I got out of this video was "Entertain us!" They whine about having big, lecture-based classes with readings that are not "relevant" to their lives, and which are so boring that they either Facebook through class or don't show up at all. And faculty, presumably, are supposed to fix this by putting on a song and dance every class, integrating video and Internet to recapture the attention of the terminally ADD-afflicted, and make the readings all about them. How are these kids supposed to go out and solve "war," "racial tension," and all the other problems they complain about if they can't be bothered to pick up a book, stay awake during an hour-long lecture, or fill out a scantron sheet?
Grrrr, and they need to get off my lawn while they're at it . . .
And I agree that the video doesn't represent the smart, motivated kids who take responsibility for their own learning. It paints all students as brain-dead, technology-addicted slackers. (But, then again, they're the ones who made the video . . .)
So cute! I love how she tries to sound "Dylan-esque," too. If only we could clone her . . . :)
Hee hee hee! Old people in China are awesome. And I really can't blame this guy, given that drivers in China will honk madly at you even if you're trying to cross the street 500 yards away, and will only slow down at the very last second to avoid running you over. Yan Zheng-ping: the Outlaw of the Zebra Crossings!
Good analysis, John. I doubt that the writer of that article's ever been to China. He seems to be extrapolating too much from Europe, where people have strong regional identities (Scottish, Welsh, Breton, Basque, etc.) that often override their national identities. (Which, I guess, crushes my hopes of a nascent New England Pride movement emerging in China, marked by a preference for Dunkin' Donuts and clam chowdah. I hear the latter is popular in one little corner of Guangzhou . . .) ;)
I'd just like to add that, at Spice Street, the buffet comes free with a brunch dish (waffles, pancakes, etc.). You get a lot of food for your buck and the buffet is excellent: grape leaves, hummus, breads, etc. The Granary at Fearrington Village and the cafe at the NC Museum of Art also have great brunch food.
Wow! Awesome pictures, baby! I love the one with the otter underwater and the duck making ripples. And those gators look like they're about to munch on some of the kids who were visiting the zoo . . .
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Contraption