Memoirs Of A Geisha Film Cast

Posted by MikeyMike at 04:47 PM on August 31, 2004.

Lol! Madonna as Geisha?! O^0 "Love you long time, Joe"

Yea!!, Michelle Yeoh, Gong Li, and Zhang Ziyi!

I hear the complaints... How come not Japanese to play lead role? Ethnic Chinese stars (Especially after CTHD) more well known here in US. Hope they dont botch this movie, as I loved the book! Such memorable characters!! Li Gong as Hatsumoto! LOL Inspired casting!!

From IMDB.com review:

Asian movie stars Michelle Yeoh and Gong Li have signed to appear alongside Zhang Ziyi in Steven Spielberg's eagerly-anticipated film adaptation of Arthur Golden's book Memoirs Of A Geisha. Malaysian star Yeoh, 41 and Chinese actresses Gong, 38, and Ziyi, 25, will be directed by Chicago film maker Rob Marshall in the drama, which starts filming in Japan in September. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon beauty Ziyi is set to play lead role Sayuri - a young woman who is sold by her poverty-stricken parents to a geisha house in Kyoto. Executive producer Spielberg bought the film rights to the 1997 bestseller many years ago and has been searching for the perfect actresses. Superstar Madonna's geisha look in her 1998 video "Nothing Really Matters" was inspired by Golden's story and the singer always said she would love to star in the movie.

Currently listening to: Turning Japanese
Currently reading: Arthur Golden's Memoirs Of A Geisha
Currently feeling: Yea!!!

9 Yeah Baby!s

Various and Sundry

Posted by MikeyMike at 05:22 PM on September 2, 2004.

Just a few random thoughs:

Windows Media Player 10 (WMP10) is out! I know, Bill's Evil Empire and all that... But it has a LOT of capabilites! And even supports (finally) native mp3 format rips. Now you can spend you money (lol!) at somewhere else other than Itunes... even though I am experiencing extreme ipod lust!

Anyone know what's the best RSS reader program? I especially want a Palm PDA version!

Windows XP SP2 (Service Pack 2). The fact that Chairman Bill put the resources into this tells how vulnerable XP was, epsecially for the average user. After all, not everyone has a Computer Science degree. So, mostly what they did was turn on by default defensive measures, and add a few tweeks here and there. Like turn on automatic OS updates. Many people nver update their system, and this will will help you from becoming a zombie machine for hackers out there... Unfortunately, this is a MAJOR update and is 80mb. You can order it from MS for free (4-6 weeks delivery!!) lol

Currently listening to: BoA's The Love Bug
Currently reading: Chun Sue's Beijing Doll
Currently feeling: lord help dialups!

9 Yeah Baby!s

Lea Salonga 2005 US Tour

Posted by MikeyMike at 09:02 PM on September 4, 2004.

Wow, just heard about this! Lea Salonga, star of Miss Saigon on the West End and Broadway, Les Miz, Flower Drum Song, and singing of voice in the animated movies Aladdin and Mulan, and so many other things, is doing a US singing tour next year. Hehe!

She's a national icon in the Philippines, and quite a nice person, as well as oustanding performer! She got married recently, so might makin' some babies soon too!

Lea US Tour

Currently listening to: Miss Saigon - Sun and Moon
Currently feeling: whee!

10 Yeah Baby!s

TFH

Posted by MikeyMike at 10:05 PM on September 10, 2004.

Too f**kin' hot to stay in room with PC, even with fan! Don't need AC in this area, except maybe for a couple of weeks a year... This is one of those weeks! Going to get in pool now... hehe!

Currently listening to: Too Hot
Currently reading: Peter Mayle's A Year in Provence
Currently feeling: tfh!

9 Yeah Baby!s

Morning Has Broken

Posted by MikeyMike at 07:30 AM on September 11, 2004.

Just another beautiful San Diego sunrise... One that I am rarely up to capture on "film" (pixels?)...

Nature doesn't know that this is the anniversary of that terrible day

Currently listening to: F.I.R.'s Lydia (Instrumental Version)
Currently feeling: breakfast burrito

12 Yeah Baby!s

Classmates.com

Posted by MikeyMike at 11:42 PM on September 11, 2004.

If you signed up for Classmates.com, but didn't pay for "Gold" membership, then you know how frustrating it can be to find anyone you only slightly remember. But now you can post a picture with free membership!

Classmates.com

Classmates has the widest membership in the US, at least. Find out what those peeps in High School are up to now! lol

Currently feeling: nostalgic

9 Yeah Baby!s

U.S. slips to 10th in broadband rankings

Posted by MikeyMike at 11:47 AM on September 12, 2004.

Then though more peeps here have broadband than ever, many countries have even higher adoption rates. I think the unspoken factor is government subsities and/or the much denser concentration of the majority of people in those areas, even in big countries like Canada. I hear that in Korean big cites, virtually everyone has broadband, and all that unbiquitous connectivity is changing people's behaviors.

All this spyware and virus crap is turning off a LOT of people I know! Some peeps are even *shudder* writing snail mail again!

Here are some choice quotes from the article, and a link to the complete text. I got 2mb DSL... How do you connect to the Internet??

"WASHINGTON - U.S. communications regulators Thursday insisted the United States was making progress in rolling out high-speed Internet service, despite falling further behind other countries."

"President Bush has pushed for universal broadband access by 2007 while Democratic challenger Sen. John Kerry has pledged tax breaks to boost broadband deployment.

Broadband is becoming more and more popular as consumers want faster access to the information superhighway to communicate, shop, do research, watch movies and listen to music, among a myriad of other uses."

"FCC Commissioner Michael Copps, a Democrat, said the agency had failed to establish a coherent policy for broadband, sacrificing the nation's rank. He also noted that service was as cheap as $10 a month in Japan for 8 megabits a second versus $30-$50 for 1-3 megabits in the United States." More

Currently listening to: High-speed Hiway
Currently feeling: connected

2 Yeah Baby!s

Careless Whisper

Posted by MikeyMike at 12:46 AM on September 13, 2004.

I found this video by up and coming (no pun intended) R&B star "Del". A cool and sexy new version of George Michael's Careless Whisper... I'd say that Del had more than a bit of fun making this one! See what you think (a bit more than "PG")

Del's Careless Whisper Video"

Currently listening to: Del's Careless Whisper
Currently feeling: naughty boy

4 Yeah Baby!s

Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

Posted by MikeyMike at 02:32 AM on September 13, 2004.

Man! Here's a movie I really want to see! A remake of one of those crusty old 30's serials - except it's a 100 million dollar Hollywood remake with all the digital magic that can brought to bare these days! And... it has Jude Law, Angelina Jolie, and that dame with a baby named Apple (presumably because she loves her ipod so)! I know that I have JenJen's attention at this point anyway!

Save me the isle seat, as they say... Even the trailer is really exciting Click here

And here's the movie's Site

Currently feeling: more popcorn!

9 Yeah Baby!s

Scripps Named in Top 100 Most Wired

Posted by MikeyMike at 06:26 PM on September 13, 2004.

I don't talk about Scripps much, so as not to bore the hell out of you guys! But this pretty cool. It's easy to forget how much "wired" stuff we have here. Like Wi-Fi with Tablet PCs, and Hi-Res X-rays that can be viewed from any of our hospitals online (they used to have to trasport them by vehicle), and a ton of other stuff. This is the kind of technology that could save your life! Here's a short quote and a link to the article:

"We need to be able to deliver clinically relevant information at the point of decision making," said Joe Traube, M.D., Scripps Vice President and Medical Director for Information Services.

For example, clinical decisions are not only being made at the patient’s bedside. An on-call physician may be consulted about a patient while away from the hospital. Access to important patient information can speed the time care is delivered and improve patient safety and patient outcomes. More

Currently feeling: Modern Marvels

1 Yeah Baby!s

New York, New York!

Posted by MikeyMike at 09:19 PM on September 17, 2004.

Just read that Fred Ebb died on September 11. Spooky huh? The guy that wrote the lyrcs to The Big Apple's "theme song" past on That day? And yes - It's the Frank Sinatra version that's playing in your head...


Start spreading the news
I'm leaving today
I want to be a part of it, New York, New York
These vagabond shoes
Are longing to stray
And make a brand new start of it
New York, New York
I want to wake up in the city that never sleeps
To find I'm king of the hill, top of the heap
These little town blues
Are melting away
I'll make a brand new start of it
In old New York
If I can make it there
I'll make it anywhere
It's up to you, New York, New York.

I want to wake up in the city that never sleeps
To find I'm king of the hill, top of the heap
These little town blues
Are melting away
I'll make a brand new start of it
In old New York
If I can make it there
I'll make it anywhere
It's up to you, New York, New York.

Currently listening to: New York, New York
Currently feeling: thinking

2 Yeah Baby!s

Vienna Teng's Tour Schedule

Posted by MikeyMike at 09:44 PM on September 18, 2004.

If you're not on her mailing list, here's the upcoming schedule... I'm hoping to see her in San Diego this Saturday!


Very special thanks to all of you who responded to the call for house concerts. There were so many volunteers from so many parts of the country, we couldn't take them all! It's great to see so much support and enthusiasm for Vienna's music.

The fall tour fast approaches, starting next week in southern California! New dates are being added daily, but here's the initial list:

Fri 9/24: Santa Monica, CA (McCabe's Guitar Shop)
Sat 9/25: San Diego, CA (Acoustic Music San Diego)
Sat 10/9: Albuquerque, NM (AMP House Concerts)
Tue 10/12: Houston, TX (Mucky Duck)
Wed 10/13: Austin, TX (Cactus Cafe)
Fri 10/22: Saratoga, CA (Villa Montalvo - sold out)
Wed 10/27: Eugene, OR (Cafe Paradiso)
Thu 10/28: Seattle, WA (The Triple Door)
Thu 11/4: Tarrytown, NY (Tarrytown Music Hall - opening for Marc Cohn) Fri 11/5: Somerville, MA (Somerville Theater - opening for Marc Cohn) Sat 11/6: West Long Branch, NJ (Pollak Theatre - opening for Marc Cohn) Tue 11/9: Philadelphia, PA (World Cafe Live - opening for Marc Cohn) Wed 11/10: Annapolis, MD (Ram's Head - opening for Marc Cohn) Thu 11/11: New York, NY (Joe's Pub, 2 shows) Fri 11/12: Kent, OH (Kent State Folk Festival - opening for Sam Bush) Sat 11/13: Jackson, TN (Ned McWherter Center - opening for Marc Cohn) Sun 11/14: Atlanta, GA (Variety Playhouse - opening for Marc Cohn) Tue 11/16: Greenville, SC (The Handlebar - opening for Marc Cohn) Wed 11/17: Charlotte, NC (Neighborhood Theatre - opening for Marc Cohn) Fri, 12/3: Santa Barbara, CA (Lobero Theatre - opening for Jackie Greene)

Remember: there are LOTS more to come, including house concerts! Keep an eye on

http://www.viennateng.com/tour

for details on the latest schedule

from her song Anna Rose:

Anna Rose sleep well tonight
the stars are dancing on the carpet of the sky
time to close your wondering eyes
where I see the sleepiness creeping

Anna Rose it makes my heart smile
to know you give love so freely
Anna Rose it makes it worthwhile
your love makes me see things so clearly
how it grows heaven knows
Anna Rose sleep well tonight

Anna Rose it's time to dream

I see that your imagination knows no bounds
there it flows like some magical stream
and carries you on its journey

Anna Rose it makes my heart smile
to know you give love so freely
Anna Rose it makes it worthwhile
your love makes me see things so clearly
how it grows heaven knows
Anna Rose dream well tonight

Currently listening to: Vienna Teng's Gravity
Currently feeling: excited

Add a Comment

So you want to be a programmer?

Posted by MikeyMike at 01:03 PM on September 19, 2004.

Very nice article by someone who should know. Of course, the lines are starting to blur somewhat on what a "programmer" is these days. But if you're looking to make programming a carreer, this is a must read! And if you just curious, it makes interesting reading.

Want To be A Programmer?

Plus, the AnalogX web site has some really nice utilities for free. Well written Network, programming and music programs to be had. Sure to be something for everyone! For instance, I love Netstat Live to see how much data is (or isn't) actually flowing on my 'net connection!

Currently listening to: Hi Ho, A programming We Will Go
Currently feeling: cognitive

2 Yeah Baby!s

Emmys

Posted by MikeyMike at 04:25 PM on September 19, 2004.

So, what do you think about the Emmys?? I don't even watch network TV anymore, so... Hopefully, someone's top will slip off or something, to make worth the time! Emmy Info

Currently listening to: Um, Emmy Song?
Currently feeling: wake me

7 Yeah Baby!s

Emmy Winners

Posted by MikeyMike at 03:20 PM on September 20, 2004.

Here ya' go... The Winners Whattya' think? Did the right shows win?

Complete list of winners at Sunday's 56th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards presented by the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences:

Drama Series: "The Sopranos," HBO.
Comedy Series: "Arrested Development," Fox.
Miniseries: "Angels in America," HBO.
Variety, Music or Comedy Series: "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart," Comedy Central.
Made-for-TV Movie: "Something the Lord Made," HBO.
Reality-Competition Program: "The Amazing Race," CBS.
Actor, Drama Series: James Spader, "The Practice," ABC.
Actor, Comedy Series: Kelsey Grammer, "Frasier," NBC.
Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Al Pacino, "Angels in America," HBO.
Actress, Drama Series: Allison Janney, "The West Wing," NBC.
Actress, Comedy Series: Sarah Jessica Parker, "Sex and the City," HBO.
Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Meryl Streep, "Angels in America," HBO.
Supporting Actor, Drama Series: Michael Imperioli, "The Sopranos," HBO.
Supporting Actor, Comedy Series: David Hyde Pierce, "Frasier," NBC.
Supporting Actor, Miniseries or Movie: Jeffrey Wright, "Angels in America," HBO.
Supporting Actress, Drama Series: Drea de Matteo, "The Sopranos," HBO
Supporting Actress, Comedy Series: Cynthia Nixon, "Sex and the City," HBO.
Supporting Actress, Miniseries or Movie: Mary-Louise Parker, "Angels in America," HBO.
Individual Performance in a Variety or Music Program: Elaine Stritch, "Elaine Stritch: At Liberty," HBO.
Directing for a Drama Series: "Deadwood: Deadwood: Pilot," HBO.
Directing for a Comedy Series: "Arrested Development: Pilot," Fox.
Directing for a Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: "Angels in America," HBO.
Directing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program: "The 76th Annual Academy Awards," ABC.
Writing for a Drama Series: "The Sopranos: Long Term Parking," HBO.
Writing for a Comedy Series: "Arrested Development: Pilot," Fox.
Writing for a Miniseries, Movie or Dramatic Special: "Angels in America," HBO.
Writing for a Variety, Music or Comedy Program: "The Daily Show With Jon Stewart," Comedy Central.
Bob Hope Humanitarian Award: Danny Thomas.

Currently listening to: Emmy Winning Song
Currently feeling: snort

5 Yeah Baby!s

Attacks on Windows PC's Grew in First Half of 2004

Posted by MikeyMike at 04:46 PM on September 20, 2004.

Hardly news, huh? But especially if you have Broadband, you HAVE to have the XP SP2, an anti-virus program and a spyware program like Ad-Aware installed. If not, you are not only risking your own PC, but hurting the whole Internet, by potientially making you part of the "Zombie" army that hackers use to massively disrupt and abuse the 'net. Here's an interesting quote about hacker motivation these days:

The survey warns about a significant increase in the number of "bot," or robot, networks, which are arrays of interconnected personal computers that have been compromised to inject large volumes of viruses, worms, spyware or spam into the Internet. Over the first six months, the number of monitored bot networks rose to more than 30,000, from fewer than 2,000.

This represents the expansion of a black market economy in which the creators of the bot networks sell access to them to commercial spammers and others who wish to send information anonymously, according to the survey. More

Currently listening to: Show Me the Money!
Currently feeling: eek!

6 Yeah Baby!s

Blogger's Burn Out

Posted by MikeyMike at 06:17 PM on September 21, 2004.

Interesting story from Wired News. I can relate with a lot of what's mentioned in the story, even though I am hardly a big-time blogger! Some good quotes:


"When it's fun and it's going really well, you feel (great), and when it's not fun, it starts feeling like ... when you have to go to a job every day from nine to five," said Jason Kottke, the author of kottke.org and remaindered links, popular blogs about technology, culture, photography and other topics. "You start to feel like the readers are depending on you, and ... like you have to post something whether you feel like it or not, and that can be depressing."

Blogging for some is an obvious labor of love, and having a forum that belongs to them and enables them to write whatever they want, and have it seen by throngs of readers, is a very attractive proposition. This is especially true because blogging is a timeless endeavor and one that allows authors to vent about whatever's on their minds.

For Glenn Reynolds, a professor at the University of Tennessee and the author of InstaPundit, one of the most widely read conservative blogs, the best thing about blogging is interacting with his readers.

"There are a lot of smart people everywhere," he said, "and I think it's easy for people who work at universities, where there are supposed to be a lot of smart people, to forget that there are a lot of other smart people out there in all walks of life."

But having such a forum can quickly become a demanding habit.

Several bloggers contacted for this story noted that their readers seem to look at their regular, consistent posting patterns as somewhat akin to a sign of physical health. And any break in that pattern is sometimes seen as a cause for alarm.

"I know that if I go more than about five or six hours without posting, or telling people that I'm not going to be blogging for the rest of the day," said Reynolds, readers e-mail him and say, "You haven't posted anything in five or six hours. Are you OK?"

You might also find this site interesting BlogPulse.com. They document trends in the "blogosphere:... Including a blog search engine. try typing in tabulas and see what you get...

Currently listening to: A blogging we will go
Currently feeling: sizzle

2 Yeah Baby!s

Man Shoots Wife, Mistakes Her for Monkey

Posted by MikeyMike at 05:12 PM on September 22, 2004.

From the "wtf" file:

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - A Malaysian man shot and killed his wife after he mistook her for a monkey picking fruit in a tree behind their house, the New Straits Times said on Wednesday.
The man, 70, is being held by police for causing death through recklessness after he fired a shotgun at what he thought was a monkey in a mangosteen tree on Monday, the newspaper said.
His wife, 68, had used a ladder to climb into the tree and was picking the tropical fruit when she was shot. She was pronounced dead on arrival at a hospital, the paper said. The couple lived in central Malaysia and had raised 13 children. More

More from KL: (She wouldn't have a chance in a room full of Scorpios! ) KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) - A Malaysian woman has set a new world record for living in a room full of scorpions, having spent 33 days in a glass box crawling with 6,000 of them.
But Nur Malena Hassan, nicknamed "Scorpion Queen", wants to stretch her feat to 36 days and plans to remain inside the box, measuring 12 feet by 10 feet, until Saturday, when she hopes to have put the record beyond reach for some time to come.
The 27-year-old moved into the box in a shopping mall in Kuantan, about 250 km (160 miles) east of Kuala Lumpur, on August 21. She has only left the box for a daily 15-minute bathroom break, even though she has been stung several times. More


And wasn't El taking about ghosts?!:

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - Fear of a ghost who knocks on doors and wafts the scent of aftershave lotion along corridors has forced a prestigious college for statisticians in the Indian capital to close.
Students of the Indian Statistical Institute said the ghost of a dead classmate had knocked on doors, jostled them on staircases and left traces of aftershave lotion and cigarette smoke, the Times of India said.
Students linked the aftershave aroma to a first-year student who died last month of a rare heart condition.
"A fear psychosis had gripped some students. We thought it was best to allow them to go home if they wanted to," the newspaper quoted Rajeev Karandikar, head of the prestigious institute, as saying.

Currently listening to: I've Got a Lovely Bunch of Mangosteens
Currently feeling: ?!?

3 Yeah Baby!s

Code to exploit Windows graphics flaw now public

Posted by MikeyMike at 09:23 PM on September 22, 2004.

Now going to any web site can screw you! There is published code now on how to take advantage of a flaw in the way MicroSoft handles jpeg code, postientally lett hackers take over your computer. Nice, huh? Just about every web site has jpegs in there somewhere (think about your own site). You not only have to worry about IE, but also almost every MS product. Hope you have the CDs on hand to update your Word, Excel, etc.

Anyway, here's some of the story highlights:

A sample program hit the Internet on Wednesday, showing by example how malicious coders could compromise Windows computers by using a flaw in the handling of a widespread graphics format by Microsoft's software.

Security professionals expect the release of the program to herald a new round of attacks by viruses and Trojan horses incorporating the code to circumvent security on Windows computers that have not been updated. The flaw, in the way Microsoft's software processes JPEG graphics, could allow a program to take control of a victim's computer when the user opens a JPEG file.

"Within days, you'll likely see (attacks) using this code as a basis," said Vincent Weafer, senior director of security response for antivirus-software company Symantec. "This is dangerous in a sense that everyone processes JPEG files to some degree."

The program is the latest example of "exploit code," a sample that shows others how to create attack programs that can take advantage of a particular flaw. Such code preceded the Sasser worm by two days and the MSBlast worm by nine days.

The critical flaw the program exploits has to do with how Microsoft's operating systems and other software process the widely used JPEG image format. Because the software giant's Internet Explorer browser is vulnerable, Windows users could fall prey to an attack just by visiting a Web site that has JPEG images.

The flaw affects various versions of at least a dozen Microsoft software applications and operating systems, including Windows XP, Windows Server 2003, Office XP, Office 2003, Internet Explorer 6 Service Pack 1, Project, Visio, Picture It and Digital Image Pro. The software giant has a full list of the applications in the advisory on its Web site. Windows XP Service Pack 2, which is still being distributed to many customers' computers, is not vulnerable to the flaw.

Users can download the patches from Microsoft's Windows Update and Office Update servers. In addition, the software giant has made available online programs that scan for vulnerable software and patch it. More

Currently feeling: picture worth 1000 exploi

6 Yeah Baby!s

Top Musicains in My Friendster Network

Posted by MikeyMike at 02:23 AM on September 23, 2004.

lol! I never even heard of Idina Menzel. Opps! My good friends have such good taste that I always feel like I should check out anything they especially recommend... Any more suggestions?

Linkin Park
Incubus
John Mayer
Beatles
Josh Groban
Opm
Coldplay
Norah Jones
Idina Menzel
Twelve Girls Band

Currently listening to: Kai's Suddenly
Currently feeling: going to Funky Town

9 Yeah Baby!s

Scripps IS Zoo Day

Posted by MikeyMike at 09:23 PM on September 25, 2004.

Love to post some pix from that event, but my PAID Lighbox7 won't let me. Hope Tabulas doesn't go to hell too...

I deleted some Tabulas pix to make a little room for the Zoo pix...

The last pic is the jaw bone of an elephant (that passed away naturally) showing how their teeth come down, instead of erupt from the bottom. This is from the "Behind The Scenes" tour we got...

The Meercat was featured in The Lion King (Timon). In fact, The Disney animators came to the Zoo for a couple of months to get their movements down. Hakuna Matata!











Interactive SD Zoo Map

Currently listening to: If I Could Talk To The Animals
Currently feeling: Zoomania

11 Yeah Baby!s

Accents

Posted by MikeyMike at 10:53 AM on September 26, 2004.

Most cool discussion by HK1997 and Minou_Degrassi about people's accent's and how most peeps don't think they have an accent at all(!) Find your accent here

What accent do you have?? My favorite? Female Singaporean Brit!

Currently listening to: Ain't Got No Accent Maan

3 Yeah Baby!s

My Yahoo is RSS!

Posted by MikeyMike at 09:50 PM on September 27, 2004.

This is pretty cool, if you want rss and don't want to mess with new software! So now, you can keep track of all those non-Tabulas peeps!

My Yahoo! Does RSS
My Yahoo! now supports the various flavors of RSS and Atom, allowing you to add virtually anything to your page. Choose from thousands of sites that syndicate content.

Plus, The latest Mozilla Firefox PR 1.0 is pretty nice (and compatible)... I'm hating IE more everyday!

4 Yeah Baby!s

CA Earthquake!

Posted by MikeyMike at 04:16 PM on September 28, 2004.

Earthquake? What earthquake??! I came into work today (at 3pm) and everyone was talking aboput it... I was fast asleep at 10:15am when it happened, so....

It was a 6.0 quake, pretty good one, but hundreds of miles from San Diego. It rocked things a bit, but no real damage here. So, I am not dead, or anything...

More here

Currently feeling: rocking and rolling

13 Yeah Baby!s