There was a very cool talk from SIGGRAPH on a novel method for resizing images by removing parts of the image with the least energy by Dr. Shai Avidan and Dr. Ariel Shamir.
The paper can be found on Dr. Ariel Shamir’s homepage, but the site is very slow right now. Check out the embedded video below.
Link found via dpreview.com.
I enjoy late night sitcom repeats. My current favorite is Scrubs, showing at 11:30 and midnight on channel 5 (the local Fox affiliate). It’s a realistic view of life in a hospital in the framework of a sitcom. My friend Harlan really enjoys it, if for no other reason than one of the lines in the 2004 season by Doctor Cox in a “pep” talk to the interns, “Each and every one of you is going to kill a patient.” (Harlan is a neurosurgeon and one of the smartest and most capable people I know. He also has a wry sense of humor.)
One of tonights’ episodes, My Choosiest Choice of All, is one of my favorites due to the appearance of the Polyphonic Spree, an orchestral rock bank. They play their song, Light and Day, at the end of the episode.
Sunset from my apartment this evening.
A comment I wrote on the City Room blog of the NY Times was put on the blog’s front page.
I was writing in response to the mayor’s spokesman, Stu Loeser, who said, “Nobody likes taking the subway. If you like taking the subway you should see a psychiatrist, get your head examined, go to see a shrink.”
My comment was paraphrased on the blog’s front page to: “With all due respect to the mayor’s chief spokesman, I enjoy taking the subway… I haven’t driven since 1991; I don’t think that makes me crazy.”
I am enjoying my job tremendously, even though I left just after 10 p.m. tonight. Objective C is an odd hybrid between languages like C and languages like Java. And the XCode development environment is not nearly as sophisticated as Microsoft’s Visual Studio. That being said, I’m enjoying learning a new language and working with a great bunch of people.
However, that’s not what this blog post is about. While we are going to be moving to Union Square, our offices are currently located at Broadway and 26th Street. Right around the corner from the offices, on 26th between Broadway and Sixth Avenue, is Hill Country Barbecue. I visited there tonight for a quick bite to eat on the way home.
My friend Jeremy and I went to Hill Country the weekend they opened. Unfortunately, there were a couple of service issues and by the time we were seated they were out of all beef products. However, I’m happy to say that after a couple of weeks it appears that the service issues have been resolved. And I got to have some brisket.
Hill Country is cafeteria-style dining of a sorts. It is similar to Katz’s Delicatessen. Each person gets a card on the way in; as you order food from the various stations, a record of your purchases are attached to the card. Unlike Katz’s, you are seated by the hostess and drinks are brought to you by the wait staff.
Today I had their lean beef brisket. It was probably the best barbecued beef brisket I have had in New York City. It had the obligatory rosy ring, a thin layer of fat, a blackened exterior, and a rich and smoky flavor. The beef was lean but still tender. There was no need for barbecue sauce as the meat was full of flavor.
In addition to the beef brisket, I also picked up some of their jalapeño cheese sausage. (Jeremy and I had enjoyed this sausage on our visit.) This was probably the best sausage I have had in New York City. Chunks of jalapeño add fire to the smooth texture of the meat. The snap of the sausage as you bit through lead me to believe that they are using a natural casing. And, while it doesn’t affect the flavor, the sausage also look good. (I’m tempted to order a bunch from Kreuz Market, but I don’t know if I could cook them as well!)
Of course, no restaurant is perfect. Jeremy and I shared the ribs. They aren’t bad, but I wouldn’t go out of my way for them. Personally, I prefer the ribs at Daisy May’s. And if you are looking for pulled pork, look elsewhere–this is Texas-style BBQ! (I recommend Virgil’s for a good, if sweet, pulled pork sandwich.)
The main thing to watch out for is how you order. This is not a cheap barbecue place, and you can spend a lot of money quickly! Most of the meat is sold by the pound. Keep in mind that a quarter-pound of brisket is a fairly decent portion. A bit of brisket and a sausage is easily enough food for one person. And if you are looking to get some side dishes and dessert, then I would only get one or the other. Another way to look at it is that this is a great place to go with a bunch of people. I recommend starting with less food than you think you want. You can always go back and get more since the setup is cafeteria style.
Jeremy and I shared a couple of side dishes. We got the cole slaw and potato salad. If I remember correctly, the potato salad was awesome and the cole slaw was not so great. The deviled eggs looked great, but were a bit too pricey to try.
The beer list at Hill Country is a standard list of popular beers with a couple of interesting additions. They are a full bar, but I have not had any mixed drinks there.
The atmosphere at Hill Country is very nice–lots of communal tables with several two and four tops. There are high ceilings giving the room a nice open feeling. I haven’t been downstairs, but they have live music which is piped to the upstairs. At times it felt a little loud, but it just added to the charm. They have worked out a lot of kinks in the service since Jeremy and I visited, but I would still be nervous about visiting if it were really busy.
I recommend Hill Country for good food and a fun time.
This first day of summer was last week, and a perfect dish for summer is pasta with pesto sauce. It’s a very easy dish with any number of variations. My pesto tonight was fairly traditional: basil, garlic, pine nuts, Parmesan cheese, olive oil, and a bit of salt and pepper. I threw everything in a small grinder and a few minutes later I had a nice sauce. While I prepared the ingredients, I boiled some water and cooked linguine. When the pasta was done, I mixed it with the sauce and the dish was ready to eat!
I had my pasta with a nice half-bottle of Domaine de la Solitude Châteauneuf-du-Pape. It had a spicy flavor which complimented the strong flavors of the pesto.
Monday, June 11, was my final day at Time Inc. I started working at Sports Illustrated, a division of Time Inc., over 11 years ago.
Last Thursday, June 21, was my first day at BitShelter. It’s first product is PhotoShelter. PhotoShelter is an archival system for photographers; in a way, it’s a “business in a box.” It’s a great tool for photographers, and I think it really fills an important need.
It’s an exciting company and a big change from Time Inc. For example, Time Inc. has around 10,000 employees; BitShelter has less than 15. Time Inc.’s headquarters is in a building named the “Time and Life Building;” BitShelter has a small office off of Broadway. Time Inc. was founded in 1954; BitShelter was founded two years ago.
I left Time Inc. with a lot of fond memories. Not only did I get to visit any number of sporting events, but also I got to travel all around the world. I even got to attend three Olympics. Most importantly, I forged friendships I will keep with me for the rest of my life.
Today is the anniversary of the June Fourth Movement aka Tiananmen Square Massacre.