Night owl

In other news, I couldn't go to sleep last night. I stayed up until 5:30AM and woke up at 9AM for work. There is nothing worse than the lack of sleep. Nothing. If I can have any one super power, it would the ability to not have to sleep.

LIMA, Peru - An extremely rare species of tiny owl has been seen in the wild for the first time, the American Bird Conservancy said Thursday. The long-whiskered owlet, one of the world's smallest owls, was discovered in 1976. Researchers have caught a few specimens in nets after dark but had not seen it in nature.

It was spotted in the wild in February by researchers monitoring a private conservation area in Peru's northern jungle.

The conservancy said in a news release that investigators encountered the owlet three times during daylight hours and recorded its calls frequently at night. The group said the sighting "is considered a holy grail of South American ornithology."

The owl is so distinct that it has been named in its own genus, "Xenoglaux," meaning "strange owl," due to the long wispy feathers around its reddish-orange eyes.

The owl inhabits the dense undergrowth of highland forests in a remote region of Peru.

"Seeing the long-whiskered owlet is a huge thrill," said David Geale of the Association of Andean Ecosystems, who was a member of the research team. "Its population is estimated to be less than 1,000 birds and possibly as few as 250."

He said the species is threatened by the rapid destruction of its forest habitat and its small range.

The researchers captured a bird in a mist-net and later released it onto a tree branch, where it was photographed before disappearing into the night. Photos provided by the conservancy show a bright-eyed bird not much bigger than the fist of the person holding it.

Source: Yahoo! news

Wait, can I have yr number?

For the first time ever, I asked a girl I met for her number... and got it!

I was at the Tussle show last week and during Old Time Religion, the third bands set, I noticed a girl sitting by herself at a table. We would casually look in each others direction and no one came by for about 10-15 minutes so I said to myself, "I'll get one more beer and if she is still there, I will walk up to her."

I'll leave out the details but it was a very nice conversation that lasted for the rest of the band's set, about 20 minutes. It turned out she was with her friends who are OTR fans but she didn't care for them. When the set ended she told me she had to go find her friends and as she got up I said, "wait, can I have yr number?" and to my surprise she gave it to me. I walked home completely psyched and happy. I was surprised at how easy it was.

A few days later I called but got her voicemail. At least she didn't give me a fake number. Then I texted her to see if she wanted to meet up again. Well, that was four days ago and... nothing.

Oh well, she was really cute and at least I tried.

Zodiac

I went to see David Fincher's new film, Zodiac, last night at the Metreon. I haven't been to a movie theater in probably six months but I just couldn't wait to see a movie about San Francisco in the 60's/70's.

The film was pretty good and better the more I think about it. Even though I read a few reviews and had some idea of what it was about, I didn't expect it to be more of a character-driven film focusing on the three main characters. The film is about how the three people's lives changed, even long after the case disappears from the media. I really liked Jake Gyllenhal's character. He obsesses over the case to the point of neglecting his family and self. It kind of reminded me of my obsessions...

Speaking of which, after the show was let out, the audience slowly filed out and I noticed from the corner of my eye a blonde woman with her hair covering her eyes. I did a double take and shouted out, "Ellie!" It was none other than Ellie Erickson of Erase Errata. She was with her boyfriend and we exchanged our views of the film really quickly. I didn't want to take up her space so we said our byes and I quickly walked off, perhaps a bit too quick so I probably looked awkward flying by all the other people. Anyways, she must think I'm really creepy now cause I went by myself to a screening of a film about serial killer... well, I like to think of it as a film about obsessives. :P

From a technical and formalist standpoint, the film is amazing. Fincher completely transforms the city to the way it was. I was constantly trying to recognize all the street shots. There is an amazing fly by shot approaching the Port of San Francisco, and all the cityscape looks accurate down to the construction, the freeway that was levelled after the earthquake, etc. He also has trick shots using text over film and helicopter shots that have to be seen to be believed.

Anyways, I thought it was pretty good, not Fincher's best, but now that I've slept on it, I'm liking it more. I would love to check it out again.