Raising Gremlins

by Rahmal Conda, 04:58 AM November 01, 2010 – 2 Comments

I was watching the old classic 'Gremlins' one lazy Saturday. I hadn't seen it since I was in college, and a lot has changed since then, one of the most important of which is the fact that I've started a family.

The older, slightly fatter version of me was struck with the similarities of raising gremlins (or Mogwai, their pre-pupal persona) and children. People without kids will probably gasp as they read this, shocked by my willingness to compare my own progeny to villainous little demons. But I take heart in the knowledge that my fellow parents will understand completely.

The first, and most obvious similarity is their mischievous nature. I can't speak for everyone, but my children, just like gremlins, are in everything! Touching, exploring, playing, breaking... I've... more

Event Horizon

by Rahmal Conda, 08:33 AM June 16, 2010 – 0 Comments

Having just recently moved my family from Chicago, the city where I spent most of my life, to the Bay Area, a place I barely knew before deciding to resettle here, I've been giving a lot thought to the forces that drive us to do what we do. You see, when I made up my mind to move, I didn't really know what I wanted, I just knew I had to find a better quality of life than the one I had. And once I decided to find that, there seemed to be something pulling my here to the Bay. Some unseen gravitational force seemed to guide my decisions and clear my path of any obstacles that kept me from here. And now, having settled in a town on the East Bay near Oakland, I feel it still. As if even though I have found a place to call home, my journey continues. That feeling has caused me to wonder ... more

Prince of Persia My A$$

by Rahmal Conda, 09:37 AM May 29, 2010 – 1 Comment

I went to see Prince of Persia this evening. Not bad. A little escapist fantasy to take the edge off of a long, stressful week. But as I do at the end of all movies, I began to analyze. The gift (and curse) of an engineer's mind. If a movie is really good, I spend hours analyzing the characters, the plot, and the plot twists. But for a movie of this caliber, it's usually the choices made by the creators that occupies my mind. It was on the drive home that I asked myself the question: What is it about non-white leading characters that Hollywood power brokers find so grotesque? I can't figure it out. Jake Gyllenhaal is a good actor, but a white kid flipping through the slums of an ancient Persian capitol? Come on! Why is that not ridicu... more