From the NY Times:

“The Big Lebowski” has spawned its own shaggy, fervid world: drinking games, Halloween costumes, bumper stickers (“This aggression will not stand, man”) and a drunken annual festival that took root in Louisville, Ky., and has spread to other cities. The movie is also the subject of an expanding shelf of books, including “The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Coen Brothers” and the forthcoming “The Tao of the Dude.”

Where cult films go, academics will follow. New in bookstores, and already in its second printing, is “The Year’s Work in Lebowski Studies,” an essay collection edited by Edward P. Comentale and Aaron Jaffe (Indiana University Press, $24.95). The book is, like the Dude himself, a little rough around the edges. But it’s worth an end-of-the-year holiday pop-in. Ideally you’d read it with a White Russian — the Dude’s cocktail of choice — in hand.

And with that in mind ….

They call Los Angeles the City of Angels. I didn’t find it to be that exactly, but I’ll allow as there are some nice folks there. ‘Course, I can’t say I seen London, and I never been to France, and I ain’t never seen no queen in her damn undies as the fella says. But I’ll tell you what, after seeing Los Angeles and this a here story I’m about to unfold–wal, I guess I seen somethin’ ever’ bit as stupefyin’ as ya’d see in any a those other places, and in English too, so I can die with a smile on my face without feelin’ like the good Lord gypped me.

This Chinaman is not the issue! I’m talking about drawing a line in the sand, Dude. Across this line you do not, uh–and also, Dude, Chinaman is not the preferred, uh. . . Asian- American. Please.

You want a toe? I can get you a toe, believe me. There are ways, Dude. You don’t wanna know about it, believe me.

Nihilists! Fuck me. I mean, say what you like about the tenets of National Socialism, Dude, at least it’s an ethos.

She’s not my special lady, she’s my fucking lady friend. I’m just helping her conceive, man!

That rug really tied the room together.

Smokey, my friend, you are entering a world of pain.

Hey, careful, man, there’s a beverage here!

You said it, man. Nobody fucks with the Jesus.

The Stranger: There’s just one thing, Dude.
The Dude: And what’s that?
The Stranger: Do you have to use so many cuss words?
The Dude: What the fuck you talking about?
The Stranger: Okay, Dude. Have it your way.

My art has been commended as being strongly vaginal which bothers some men. The word itself makes some men uncomfortable. Vagina. Yes, they don’t like hearing it and find it difficult to say whereas without batting an eye a man will refer to his dick or his rod or his Johnson.

My father’s weakness is vanity, hence the slut.

The Big Lebowski: What makes a man, Mr. Lebowski?
The Dude: Dude.
The Big Lebowski: Huh?
The Dude: Uhh… I don’t know sir.
The Big Lebowski: Is it being prepared to do the right thing, whatever the cost? Isn’t that what makes a man?
The Dude: Hmmm… Sure, that and a pair of testicles.

The Dude abides. I don’t know about you but I take comfort in that. It’s good knowin’ he’s out there. The Dude. Takin’ ‘er easy for all us sinners. Shoosh. I sure hope he makes the finals.

and of course

This is what happens when you fuck a stranger in the ass, Larry.

Find the entire screenplay to Big Lebowski here.  You never know when it might come in handy.  And Big Lebowski 10th Anniversary Edition DVD, packed in a miniature bowling ball.  It came out on HD a couple years back, still waiting for Blu-Ray.

Big Lebowski Bif Bang Pow! Bobblehead:

The Dude (Dream Sequence) Bobble Head:

Big Lebowski Urban Achievers Bobble Head Set:

A small sampling of Lebowski books:

• I’m a Lebowski, You’re a Lebowski
• The Year’s Work in Lebowski Studies
• Big Lebowski 2010 Wall Calendar
• The Big Lebowski: The Making of a Coen Brothers Film
• The Big Lebowski (BFI Film Classics series)
• The Dude Abides: The Gospel According to the Coen Brothers

Google has a new product in Google Labs, Google City Tours.  (Did I write “Google” often enough in one sentence?)  Labs is their beta site and City Tours needs work, a lot of work, at least for Hong Kong.  I searched on “Hong Kong” and got no results.  So I tried “Central, Hong Kong” and the result was a two day walking tour of the Central district.  It’s pretty freaking sad.

On day 1, they suggest you visit 6 places.  This includes the Mandarin Landmark Hotel, the building on Pedder Street with lots of clothing stores, Soho, the LKF hotel, one art gallery and a dai pai dong (I think).  That’s it for an entire day.

Day 2 gets worse.  Six stops for the entire day, including the Ritz Carlton Hotel, which no longer exists.  Plus LegCo, City Hall and the hideous Cheung Kong Centre.

Definitely still a few bugs in the system.

Yes, I made my decision and I pulled the trigger, in a manner of speaking.   I’ve decided not to buy the Nikon D700.  I’m going to wait awhile because I think 2010 will see a replacement/refresh of that camera.   Plus, once I make the move from DX to FX format sensors, I’d need to get some new lenses.  So I can start off now with new lenses, see some “upgrade” from that, and then be ready with these lenses if and when I do make the transition.

I bought the Nikkor AF-S 24-70mm f/2.8G ED lens. This is a huge lens – it weighs in at 900 grams/31.7 ounces.  Definitely not the lightest lens for casual walking around but can’t wait for the next time to use it in the studio or for when the weather finally clears and I can get some nice shots around the Sai Kung harbor area.  I shot some random stuff last night; haven’t had a chance to unload the files to the computer and take a look at them yet.

I bought the lens in Hang Hau.  They only had one in the shop and didn’t want to unwrap it and let me play with it until I said, “Yes, I’ll buy it.”  I can sort of understand that – it’s an expensive bit of gear.  I knew I wanted it – but all I had to say was, “Yes,” and it was on my camera before I handed the guy the credit card.  He was clearly nervous.

This lens has received exceptional reviews so I’m excited to have it.  Ken Rockwell:  “My tests show this 24-70mm f/2.8 is the sharpest normal zoom ever made by Nikon. The 24-70 is an exquisite hunk of solid metal that just makes pictures with no fiddling. It feels as if it was hewn from a single solid ingot. It just works, and doesn’t grate on you all day shooting with it.”

My gf and her best friend were already in Hang Hau shopping so we met after that and went over to Ajisen Ramen.  Japanese-style prawn curry with rice, miso soup and some tasteless veg cost $45 and hit the spot.  I quite like Ajisen but I had the feeling that they might use a heavy hand with the MSG in the food.   I noticed some Chinese place, no English name, logo is a cartoon of a small girl holding up a fish in each hand, right across from them in the mall, lots of noodle dishes and small plates in the $30 range, so will probably try that next time I’m there and have people with me.

Then last night, out with some friends, visiting some watering holes that I hadn’t set foot in for quite some time.  I bumped into some reminders of my old life, a little bit more than I’d expected.

We started the night at Bar 109.  A good crowd there including a number of younger, very attractive women.  We had the front table, right out on the street, and settled in there for around 3 hours.

Following that, we went over to Joe Bananas.  I couldn’t tell you the last time I’ve been inside there.  For those of you who’ve been reading me for more than 2 or 3 years, this will be meaningful.  About 15 minutes after we got there, who should come in but T’s sister.  She saw me as soon as she walked in, nodded to me, but didn’t come over – probably because I was with a group of people, female as well as male.  When I went outside for a cigarette, she joined me moments later.  I asked her how T was doing, she said fine.  “She stay in Thailand now, she doesn’t want to come back to Hong Kong.”  “Does she have a husband or boyfriend now?”  “No.”  “I see you’re still coming back to Hong Kong though.  You okay?”  “Yes.  I come back December 25.”    Okay.  And then we wished each other a happy new year and she went off to some other bar.  What can I say?  It felt more than weird to see her but certainly less weird than if it had been T instead of her.

Looking back on those days of self-destruction, I think I understand T a bit better now and understand the mistakes that I made.  I wonder if she realizes the mistakes she made?

Anyway, back inside JB’s, a couple of other girls from my past came in.  I won’t get into specifics, but lots of memories of a different time and a different lifestyle went flashing through my head.  One noticed me and nodded her head, the other either didn’t notice me or didn’t acknowledge me, not that it would have made any difference.  I didn’t go over to say hello to either of them.  Let the past be the past I figured.

And then, in a major anti-climax to the evening, some of us made the decision to go check out Neptune.  I think it’s been more than a year since I last descended those stairs, maybe even two.  One of the bartenders not only remembered me but remembered my standard beverage as well.  At least one woman at the bar recognized me.  Girls in that bar used to ask me where I lived and I’d answer, “Right here and I’m waiting for all of you to go home so I can get some sleep.”  Still basically the same band playing basically the same uninspired covers of crap pop – a shame because some of the guys in that band can play when given the chance.  The drummer is the son of Willy, lead guitarist from Icebox.

The place actually wasn’t too busy.  I stood there, scanned the room, looked to see if I could spot any other faces from my past.  If there were any, I didn’t see them.  After about 15 minutes, curiosity fulled satisfied, I said goodbye to my friends and left.  Found my girlfriend, who was in another bar with friends, and we went home.

Of course tonight is New Year’s Eve and we’ll be out together.  The plan is Indian food at a spot in Wanchai I’ve never tried (but has some good reviews on Open Rice) and then a bit of bar-hopping.  No, I won’t be carrying the D300 and 24-70mm lens with me tonight, this will be a night for my much more pocketable GF-1.

The Oatmeal, found via a tweet by Roger Ebert.

10 Words You Need to Stop Misspelling:

20 Things Worth Knowing About Beer:

Lots more good stuff to be found there.

But the window title in Firefox reads “Comics, Quizzes, and Stories – The Oatmeal.”  Isn’t that one comma too many for a site that gives humorous lessons on spelling and grammar?

Looking back, 2009 could qualify as one of the worst years of my life.  My year in review:

I lost my job.  As did about a thousand other people in my company, many of them friends.  While I no longer liked the job, I had resigned myself to riding it out for another few years till retirement.  I liked the people I worked with (at least the ones in Asia, hated most of the people back in the home office), the pay was good, etc.   Maybe it’s better that I’m forced to look for something new, something that will energize me and get me excited about work again.  Or not.

I was seriously ill.  At one point my doctor told me that I almost died, though I think he was trying to put a scare in me because I wasn’t following his instructions … okay, so I sort of didn’t eat for about 2 weeks.  On the bright side, I lost 25 pounds and since I recovered, I’ve mostly kept that off (though my chocolate addiction is starting to resurface).   I’ve made some big changes to my diet, focusing more on fresh foods, less deep fried stuff, more veg, fruit and herbs, less beef.  Being ill also meant no alcohol for six months, which I managed to do.  Now that I am drinking again, it’s a slow and gradual ramp-up.  In a weird way, if I had been able to drink during those six months, due to the work stress I probably would have gotten wasted every night and managed to do even stupider shit than the shit I normally do.  So is it possible that getting sick and almost dying saved my life?

(Also weird, over the past few months, my obstructive sleep apnea seems to have disappeared.  No, I haven’t gone to a sleep center to have this confirmed.  But a year ago, I’d wake up in the morning more tired than when I went to sleep.  Now I wake up and feel normal, whatever that is.  And my gf confirms that my snoring is far less than what it used to be.)

And the next job, the one I really want, the one I was hoping to hear about before the end of the year, has not materialized.  I’m still hopeful that it will happen but I can’t put all my eggs into this one basket.

Things that brought me joy in 2009:

My relationship with my gf got stronger and our relationship got more secure after an incredibly rocky start to the year (we almost split up a week after New Year’s).  It is very much a surprise to me and to her credit that after almost 18 months we are still together and I remain monogamous – something I would not have thought possible for me.

My decision to work on my photography skills seems to be paying off.  My investment in PASM has led to lots of new friends and a new place to hang out that’s not a bar or worse.  Some of the best times I’ve had in the past few months have been there.

My very patient publisher was pushing me for a first draft on my book by the end of last year and obviously I didn’t even come close.  This time, with no job, I’ve got no excuse and the first draft is now about 80% complete.  I don’t believe this will sell more than 100 copies when finished but I’m enjoying this journey.

Moving my blog to this new domain and to Wordpress was, in hindsight, long overdue.  I like this new “home” a lot and I’m grateful for everyone who comes here and even more grateful to those who leave comments.  (And, yes, grateful to those who click on the ads.)  I have a dream – probably a pipe dream but a dream nonetheless – that between blogging, writing and photography I could somehow earn enough to not have to take another straight job.  I don’t think that’s going to happen but I’m enjoying the pursuit of the dream nonetheless.

I know that by comparison to about 3/4’s of the world, my life is still an unattainable dream.  Many would gladly trade their lives for my “bad year.”   I do take the time to take stock in what I’ve got and what I’ve accomplished.  I don’t take that as an excuse to stop dreaming, to stop wanting to achieve and contribute, to allow myself to stand still.  That would be a fate worse than death.

So I’m looking forward to 2010 with the same sense of anticipation and excitement that I always have.  Happy New Year to all!

Just in the past week or so ….

China executes a British citizen for carrying a suitcase of drugs for someone else, ignoring all pleas for clemency and the likelihood that he was probably mentally ill and didn’t understand what he was doing.  This is a man who was running a minicab service in the UK and moved to Poland to start his own airline.  A man who claimed he spoke with the angel Gabriel and who recorded a single that he said would bring about world peace.  The Chinese authorities refused all requests to have psychiatrists conduct a full examination of his mental capabilities.  When British Prime Minister Brown issued a strongly worded statement about the execution, China responded by saying, “Nobody has the right to speak ill of China’s judicial sovereignty.”  Uh, China, actually, yeah, everyone in the world has the right to speak ill of China’s judicial sovereignty, except perhaps if they live in China.  It’s this little thing called “freedom of speech.”

Hey, over in Shanghai, they renovated a bridge over Suzhou Creek.  The piers of the crossing were supposed to be solid concrete.  Area residents complained that they saw huge holes in the piers but the contractor said, oh no, those are just “decorative features.”  Turns out they didn’t stuff those piers with concrete, they used rubbish and foam from nearby landfills.  You make a little extra profit that way.  All those buildings that collapsed in Sichuan killing thousands in the earthquake?  That new Shanghai apartment building that just fell over one day?  Not gonna happen to this bridge, I’m sure.

A national audit in China has concluded that in the first 11 months of the year, government officials “misused or embezzled” approximately US$35 BILLION.   “Auditors said government officials engaged in everything from money laundering and issuing fraudulent loans to cheating the government through the sale or purchase of state land or mining rights.”

Oh, wait, my China visa expires today.  Gotta get to CTS to renew it before the next immigration lockdown.  I’m sure they don’t read my blog but just in case, forget everything I just wrote.

Looks like I’ve got my gf convinced that Viet Nam should be our destination. The tipping point was the food. “I can eat the same food we have at Nha Trang?” (A popular Vietnamese restaurant in HK with branches in Central, Wanchai and TST.) “Yes, the same, only better!”

But now the question is, where to go?  I’ve only been there once and that was about 4 years ago.  I spent 4 days in Hanoi and 4 days in Saigon and Saigon was mostly shut down for Tet.  I preferred Hanoi but I don’t think my gf would go for it so much.  So I want to go back and spend more time in Saigon.  I’d also like to go to Hue, the old capital.  And also a few days on a beach somewhere.

So if anyone can recommend … good beach resort town, in-country travel, etc.   Thinking 3 or 4 nights in Saigon, 3 nights in Hue, 3 or 4 nights at some beach somewhere … does that sound about right?

Sitting around, crappy weather, not in the mood for much.  Added Google AdSense to the blog on the right, as you can see.  Finally got the formatting sorted out.  Also added a couple of Amazon widgets, bottom right.  And text ads only to the RSS feed.

No, I don’t think I’m going to be able to earn a living from the blog.   But if you do enjoy it here, I hope you recognize that keeping this going requires a lot of my time and I hope you’ll accept the blatant commercialization.  The ads don’t take up much bandwidth and if you don’t like ‘em, don’t click on ‘em.  But if you do want to show some measure of support, please do click on this stuff from time to time.  (I’ve earned US$1.18 from people clicking on Amazon Associates links embedded within posts in the past month.  It may seem small but it’s a chocolate bar or an ice cream cone.  Thanks for the treat!)

Guess I’m just an old hippie at heart, apologizing for doing the same thing everyone else does?

Argh.  Added Google AdSense, as you can see.  And now the “About Me” widget isn’t allowing me to edit it to change the size of the Spike logo picture.   I can remove the About Me Widget, put in a new one, and then it allows me to edit the widget itself but not to insert any text.  Feeling quite frustrated and going to take a break from this.  Bear with me, please.

Good buddy Frisko Dude found this wonderful video mash-up by DJ Earworm, United State of Pop 2009.  It takes 25 of 2009’s top singles, most of which I don’t like, and reassembles them into what is probably the best pop song of the year.

Here are the songs that are included in the video:

* The Black Eyed Peas – BOOM BOOM POW
* Lady Gaga – POKER FACE
* Lady Gaga Featuring Colby O’Donis – JUST DANCE
* The Black Eyed Peas – I GOTTA FEELING
* Taylor Swift – LOVE STORY
* Flo Rida – RIGHT ROUND
* Jason Mraz – I’M YOURS
* Beyonce – SINGLE LADIES (PUT A RING ON IT)
* Kanye West – HEARTLESS
* The All-American Rejects – GIVES YOU HELL
* Taylor Swift – YOU BELONG WITH ME
* T.I. Featuring Justin Timberlake – DEAD AND GONE
* The Fray – YOU FOUND ME
* Kings Of Leon – USE SOMEBODY
* Keri Hilson Featuring Kanye West & Ne-Yo – KNOCK YOU DOWN
* Jamie Foxx Featuring T-Pain – BLAME IT
* Pitbull – I KNOW YOU WANT ME (CALLE OCHO)
* T.I. Featuring Rihanna – LIVE YOUR LIFE
* Soulja Boy Tell ‘em Featuring Sammie – KISS ME THRU THE PHONE
* Jay Sean Featuring Lil Wayne – DOWN
* Miley Cyrus – THE CLIMB
* Drake – BEST I EVER HAD
* Kelly Clarkson – MY LIFE WOULD SUCK WITHOUT YOU
* Beyonce – HALO
* Katy Perry – HOT N COLD