peter falk died today. most probably know him as columbo, but he'll always be sam diamond to me. in honor of his somewhat (ok, incredibly) infantile humor in that film, here are some of his classic lines:
The last time I trusted a dame was in Paris in 1940. She said she was going out to get a bottle of wine. Two hours later, the Germans marched into France.
Lionel Twain: I'm the greatest, I'm number one!
Sam Diamond: To me, you look like number two, know what I mean?
Dora Charleston: What does he mean, Miss Skeffington?
Tess Skeffington: I'll tell you later. It's disgusting.
That was then, this is now, and nobody knows what tomorrow will be. That's the way things are, whether we like it or not.
Now, if one of you gentlemen would be so kind as to give my lady friend here a glass of cheap white wine, I'm going down the hall to find the can. I talk so much sometimes, I forget to go.
Sam Diamond: I get fifty dollars a day plus expenses when I can get 'em, gentleman. And I owe Miss Skeffington here three years and two month's back pay. Isn't that right, angel?
Tess Skeffington: I don't care about the money, Sam.
Sam Diamond: Neither do I.
You pit your wits with me, little man, and you won't have your wits to pit with, know what I mean?
Tess Skeffington: I'm scared, Sam. Hold me.
Sam Diamond: Hold yourself. I'm busy.
Sam Diamond: Shut up, all of yas. Nobody move!
Dick Charleston: What is it?
Sam Diamond: I have to go to the can again. I don't wanna miss nothin'.
Sam Diamond: I'll be around if you need me. All you gotta do is whistle, and you know how to whistle, don't ya, baby?
Tess Skeffington: Certainly. What do you mean? I don't understand you...
Sam Diamond: All right, never mind. Forget it. You ruined it.
6.24.2011
ace
i'm all for not confusing the reader, but this tennis story by diane pucin of the times (whose writing has not been too offensive in the past) screamed out at me. here are the first few lines:
Andy Roddick is a huge favorite at Wimbledon. Fans appreciate his personality and the effort he gives, especially after Roddick lost 16-14 in the fifth set of the finals two years ago to Roger Federer.
And when Roddick skipped this year's French Open, partly to let heal a sore shoulder, and partly because, as he says, he's realistic about the fact that at 28 years old and with his legs slowing down, Roddick has little chance of doing well on clay, it seemed fair to believe Roddick when he said he was a contender here.
leaving aside the meandering and comma-laden second graf for now, let's consider the use of pronouns (or lack thereof). as an editor, i would eliminate the second, fourth, and fifth use of "Roddick." much smoother flow, in my opinion, and i'm doubtful anyone would think pucin is referring to someone else. let's move rog up in the first graf to avoid splitting "lost" and "to." fix up the awkward shoulder-healing phrase. i'd also throw in some em dashes in the second graf (a somewhat controversial move, apparently, although i feel they can help the reader experience the sentence as the author intended, if used appropriately), and touch up the 28-year-old with old legs bit. i'm not too sure what his skipping the french open has to do with whether we believe he's a contender at wimbledon, but let's see how it looks with my changes:
Andy Roddick is a huge favorite at Wimbledon. Fans appreciate his personality and the effort he gives, especially after he lost to Roger Federer 16-14 in the fifth set of the finals two years ago.
And when Roddick skipped this year's French Open—partly to rest a sore shoulder and partly because, as he says, he's realistic about the fact that as a 28-year-old with slowing legs, he has little chance of doing well on clay—it seemed fair to believe him when he said he was a contender here.
there's your grammar/editing lesson for the day. i'm sure plenty of people would do it differently, but that's my take. any complaints?
Andy Roddick is a huge favorite at Wimbledon. Fans appreciate his personality and the effort he gives, especially after Roddick lost 16-14 in the fifth set of the finals two years ago to Roger Federer.
And when Roddick skipped this year's French Open, partly to let heal a sore shoulder, and partly because, as he says, he's realistic about the fact that at 28 years old and with his legs slowing down, Roddick has little chance of doing well on clay, it seemed fair to believe Roddick when he said he was a contender here.
leaving aside the meandering and comma-laden second graf for now, let's consider the use of pronouns (or lack thereof). as an editor, i would eliminate the second, fourth, and fifth use of "Roddick." much smoother flow, in my opinion, and i'm doubtful anyone would think pucin is referring to someone else. let's move rog up in the first graf to avoid splitting "lost" and "to." fix up the awkward shoulder-healing phrase. i'd also throw in some em dashes in the second graf (a somewhat controversial move, apparently, although i feel they can help the reader experience the sentence as the author intended, if used appropriately), and touch up the 28-year-old with old legs bit. i'm not too sure what his skipping the french open has to do with whether we believe he's a contender at wimbledon, but let's see how it looks with my changes:
Andy Roddick is a huge favorite at Wimbledon. Fans appreciate his personality and the effort he gives, especially after he lost to Roger Federer 16-14 in the fifth set of the finals two years ago.
And when Roddick skipped this year's French Open—partly to rest a sore shoulder and partly because, as he says, he's realistic about the fact that as a 28-year-old with slowing legs, he has little chance of doing well on clay—it seemed fair to believe him when he said he was a contender here.
there's your grammar/editing lesson for the day. i'm sure plenty of people would do it differently, but that's my take. any complaints?
zap
on the way into work, saw a highway alert sign reading "watch out for highway workers." always trying to jump into slow-moving cars or throw water balloons.
for those of you well-versed in warzone: tower defense, check out this setup i came up with:
for those of you well-versed in warzone: tower defense, check out this setup i came up with:
6.23.2011
on fire
two smokin' hot peppers were the highlight of a rather bland and boring green papaya salad from tj's. oh well, worth a try. i'll have to stick with the only-somewhat bland green curry-infused rice and start bringing some red pepper flakes to work to spice it up.
it's been a really slow week, and i'm going a bit stir crazy. looks like i should have a few things lined up for tomorrow, however. just need to make it through this afternoon. swell should be building into the weekend for once, so i might get a few decent waves in north la. one can only dream.
feds found the guy whose nefarious mob activities provided fodder for jack nicholson's character in the departed. he was living in santa monica. wonder if i wandered past him at any point on the promenade or along ocean avenue.
it's been a really slow week, and i'm going a bit stir crazy. looks like i should have a few things lined up for tomorrow, however. just need to make it through this afternoon. swell should be building into the weekend for once, so i might get a few decent waves in north la. one can only dream.
feds found the guy whose nefarious mob activities provided fodder for jack nicholson's character in the departed. he was living in santa monica. wonder if i wandered past him at any point on the promenade or along ocean avenue.
6.22.2011
microclimes
thank god i live near the coast. temps supposed to hit triple digits inland but remain in the 80s with morning fog along the beach during the next few days. phew. i'll just have to suffer through the 15-minute wait at the bus stop in the afternoon.
started reading the gay talese reader on the bus this morning. the guy's got skills. i'd read his (probably most well-known) piece on sinatra, but felt inspired by his enjoyably rambling description of the minutiae of new york life. i'd consider pursuing a similar project here in los angeles, just for fun, but it would take too long to explore this sprawl of a city.
started reading the gay talese reader on the bus this morning. the guy's got skills. i'd read his (probably most well-known) piece on sinatra, but felt inspired by his enjoyably rambling description of the minutiae of new york life. i'd consider pursuing a similar project here in los angeles, just for fun, but it would take too long to explore this sprawl of a city.
6.16.2011
aging war
instead of listening to any apology i might offer, read these. much more entertaining.
bit of a misty, foggy, dreary day out there in los angeles. feeling bad for those with sad. i.e., seasonal affective disorder, aka, "it's winter, i'm bummed" syndrome. might be a bit of swell out there today, but of course it's going to crap by the weekend. celebrated my first breath of fresno air last weekend with the fam. feeling a bit older, especially with the girlfriend pointing out white hairs in my beard and lamenting about my 50/50 chance of going bald. yep, mom's dad had a follicle-free pate. beginning to imagine (or notice) areas of thinning. give me 20 years and i could be this guy.
bit of a misty, foggy, dreary day out there in los angeles. feeling bad for those with sad. i.e., seasonal affective disorder, aka, "it's winter, i'm bummed" syndrome. might be a bit of swell out there today, but of course it's going to crap by the weekend. celebrated my first breath of fresno air last weekend with the fam. feeling a bit older, especially with the girlfriend pointing out white hairs in my beard and lamenting about my 50/50 chance of going bald. yep, mom's dad had a follicle-free pate. beginning to imagine (or notice) areas of thinning. give me 20 years and i could be this guy.
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