Vivek's Blog

Forgetting Sarah Marshall

Vivek — Sat, 17 May 2008 04:58:52 +0000

Contrary to the opinion of the uninformed few, Sarah Marshall is not someone I know personally. Neither does anyone else I know. I’ll wait while you Google the name Sarah Marshall.

Now that we’ve left the ignorant behind, let me get straight to the point: this movie is hilarious. Kristen Bell is hot. The acting is solid and the story is engaging. The supporting cast is brilliant. Oh, and did I mention that the movie is quite funny?

The movie is rated R, and with very good reason. You’ll know it when you see it, that’s all. It’s made by Judd Apatow so expect raunchy humor. Whatever, just watch it. It’s great.

To-Do List for Summer 2008

Vivek — Fri, 16 May 2008 04:13:06 +0000

(Not in any particular order)

Get bored

Do research

Prep for the GRE

Look at graduate schools

Go to concerts

Suffer in a small double

Find new music

Update WordPress to 2.5.1 + Change theme

Think about shifting to new host

Watch more movies

Yearn for home-cooked food

Stay cool

Get enough sleep

Be a little less anti-social

Not worry about homework/classes

Get bored

I think that just about covers everything. Let’s see how much I accomplish by the end of August.

Almost Done

Vivek — Thu, 15 May 2008 05:48:19 +0000

In about 17 hours from now, I’ll be done with another semester of classes at Columbia. It’s incredible to think that I’ve already been here for close to a year. Time has flown past pretty quick.

The thought of only one more year of undergrad to go is somewhat scary, to be honest. I have to spend the summer preparing for the GRE and hope that I can get into a decent graduate school next year. Then, the cycle starts over, except this time, it’s less fun. I think?

Countdown to Freedom: 16 Hours 23 Minutes

Next Wednesday has too many things happening

Vivek — Wed, 14 May 2008 06:01:37 +0000

My head might just explode. First, we have the UEFA Champions League Final between Manchester United and Chelsea. Of course, you all should know by now whom I will be supporting. Then, there’s the Dream Theater/Opeth concert which while definitely awesome, will be tiring due to four bands playing for a total of nearly four hours. As if this wasn’t enough, I just learned that the first installment of the Penny Arcade game also hits next Wednesday. It will be interesting to see what Tycho and Gabe came up with after years of experience gained by criticizing the work of others (when it sucked).

But that’s next week. Before that, I need to get through my 2.333 remaining finals. Peace the fuck out.

Countdown to Freedom: 40 hours.

1.667 down, 2.333 to go

Vivek — Tue, 13 May 2008 04:39:45 +0000

Yeah, I rounded to only 3 decimal places. So what?

Wait, you’re more concerned about what those numbers mean? Well, let me enlighten you. I took 5 classes this semester and 4 of them have finals. My first two finals got done today but really, I’m not “done” with the first one. You see, that class has a two-part final. The first part is what we did in class and the second part is a take-home assignment due Thursday. Which is when I have two more finals. The take-home component is worth 1/3rd of the total grade - same as the midterm and the in-class final. So technically, I’m only done with 2/3rd of that class. Add that to the second final I took today, which completes the class, and you get 1.66666666666…. which I rounded off to 1.667. I’m an engineer, bitches.

So, I now have two full finals and a take-home final to do for Thursday. That makes it 2.333 to go. Then it’s time for the long-ass summer holiday.

PS: A typo in my textbook sent me down the wrong path for all of last week with the take-home assignment. I’m now having to redo it. Good times.

Manchester United win the EPL

Vivek — Mon, 12 May 2008 04:10:40 +0000

Oh man what a day of football! United went in front courtesy a penalty by Cristiano Ronaldo, then Chelsea also went 1-0 up at home to Bolton. I got the feeling that the team to score a second goal would be crowned champions of England. Thankfully, that second goal went to United - this time, Giggs scoring from a Rooney pass. I did not watch the game but let me assure you that I was biting my nails nonetheless. The icing on the cake was Bolton’s late goal at Stamford Bridge. But after a riveting season, Man United have come out on top, deserved winners. At the other end of the table, Reading and Birmingham were relegated along with Derby, despite winning comfortably today.

While the madness was still in progress, I had this crazy thought that United and Chelsea could both lose and if Arsenal won, they’d be only a point away from equaling United and Chelsea’s points total! As it ended, Untied got 87, Chelsea 85, and Arsenal 83. Only 6 points separated the top 3 teams - shows how fierce the competition was this season.

In 10 days, the Champions League Final will take place in Moscow and I hope United can stick to Chelsea again! I then get to see Opeth and Dream Theater play live that night. Should be awesome.

Countdown to D-Day: 0 DAYS ZOMG IT’S HERE. FINALS TIME.

Gears of War 2 Trailer

Vivek — Sun, 11 May 2008 04:28:23 +0000

Oh man, this trailer has me excited! I loved Gears of War when it came out in November 2006 (insert comment about how times flies) and I’m eagerly awaiting the release of Gears of War 2 this November. I played GoW on the 360 about 3 or 4 times and also played multiplayer online. Both single player and multiplayer experiences were solid and the game was genuinely a lot of fun. It was subsequently released on the PC with additional levels but from I recall, it was buggy. Anyway, GoW2 seems to be stepping things up to the next level with huge outdoor battles and the ability to use dead Locust as shields among the things visible in this gameplay trailer. Pardon the pun, but I think this game is going to be EPIC.

If the 1UP video doesn’t play nice, follow this link: http://www.shacknews.com/onearticle.x/52629

Lateness

Vivek — Sat, 10 May 2008 05:48:05 +0000

Not a good time to talk. Tomorrow might be a better day - or it could be worse. Who knows. This last week of the semester is proving to be hell in more ways than one.

Countdown to D-Day: 2 days

Almost missed one

Vivek — Fri, 09 May 2008 04:42:20 +0000

*GASP*

I almost forgot to post an entry today, thanks to all the cramming I’m having to do. I mean, not like anyone’s reading all these blog posts. What certainly does NOT help is the fact that my first exam on Monday has a take-home component that is proving to be a bitch. I’ve spent countless hours trying to figure it out - hours that could’ve been spent studying for my other finals. I feel like I’m getting somewhere with it though. I have a bunch of calculations to do however. Then there’s the fear that I might not get summer housing or that I’ll get stuck in a double room with someone I don’t know and/or like. And as if things couldn’t get any better, I have a cold. Brilliant.

Countdown to D-Day: 3 days

Internet Radio is Cool

Vivek — Thu, 08 May 2008 04:17:39 +0000

I’m talking about the Symbian version. I have it installed on my N95-3 and I tried it out today. The interface is slick and the speeds are good, courtesy the ad-hoc Wi-fi from my laptop. The number of stations is staggering to say the least. It’s going to be a while before I identify the good ones.

I guess this is more useful if you have an unlimited data plan from your carrier. Then, it becomes a lot more practical since you can use it anytime, anywhere. I mean, I have all my music on my Zen/laptop and it doesn’t make much sense to use it when I’m in my room. Plus, I can get a more diverse range of internet radio stations from my laptop. I think this software might come in handy when I’m on campus and want to listen to some new music, instead of what I already have on my phone.

Anyway, just thought I’d post a blurb about this. If you have an S60 handset, grab Internet Radio from the following link:

http://europe.nokia.com/A4668051

Be sure to check for compatibility before downloading any files!

Countdown to D-Day: 4 days