Just a Thought

I understand and even somewhat agree with the usefulness of Twitter in the realm of business and creative ventures.  It's fun and informative to be able to check up on what your favorite bands, artists, publications, and businesses are doing.  I'd add checking up on friends to that list, but Facebook was already created for that purpose, not to mention there is always the telephone.

However, there are some things that I do not need to know about, let alone instantaneously, AS they are going down.  Examples:

"Getting fucked up with Blaze," or "taking a good shit listening to Jay-Z."

This leads me to a proposition for Twitter.com:

If users are posting dumb and useless updates on the site regularly, the name of these posts should be changed from "tweets" to "twits."  I move for a vocabulary shift to go in effect right now.  Any opinions?

Where the Wild Things Are

Although I went to see Where the Wild Things Are when it premiered on Friday afternoon, I have been putting off writing a review about it.

Why?

Because I really, really wanted to like it...But it turned out that I didn't like it at all. I wanted to refrain from going on a huge "anti-hipster" rant, although the obvious bent toward young adults, rather than children, is a big part of why this movie was so disappointing. I didn't want to complain about how the film didn't seem true to the spirit of the Maurice Sendak book, or about how the trendy Karen O. soundtrack was more distracting/annoying than refreshing, or even about how this movie didn't have any real point. However, I think that it's not really about the movie by itself, but rather about the turn that American "Counterculture" has taken in the past five years, which I think is important to consider, debate and change to become more individual again.

I think the reason why the "hipster" movement (and all that it has colored in the media, fashion, music, etc.) bothers me so much is because it has become so void of originality. I was thinking about it on the way home from the movie theater, and wondering if this is how "Hippies" felt in the mid 1970's after the culture and fashion of "hippie" became commodified, and void of the core values that started the movement.

I feel that before hipster was "Hipster," there were some cool stuff going on. I think that the point was kind of a return to the basics; do-it-yourself fashion, indie music, recycling, celebrating intelligence and geekiness, rather than standards of beauty and status that many of us grew up with. These are things that I really got behind and thought to be positive.

Now, however, I feel like this isn't even what "Hipster" means. It seems more synonymous with buying expensive clothing that LOOKS vintage or beat up (which, I believe, leads to the perpetuation of high prices and over-production of retail stores.) It's also about fetishizing everything that has to do with childhood and the unwillingness to grow up (while not being able to honestly emote or be vulnerable.) Essentially, "hipster" is all about an image, without any core beliefs or responsibilities needed to back up an honest movement. It's just an aesthetic façade, and that's disappointing to me.

Instead of going on further about how this relates to Where the Wild Things Are, I will just post an audio clip from NPR that condenses my main ideas about why the movie was so odd and uncuddly.

Sorry about the rant, guys--If you liked the film, all the more reason for you to comment! Let me know what you liked about it, I'm always open to debate.

Vintage Photography

I dream so much of the day away looking at this website. It's a collection of vintage photos that various vintage photography enthusiasts contribute to. Some of the photo selections are scans from personal collections of hard copies, while others are thematic collections found on flickr.com. The time periods span from the dawn of photography to approximately the 1970's, maybe even 1980's. (If you call that vintage, then I guess I am vintage, too!) The topics range from movie stars, to war, to leisure activities, fashion, and family portraits. I love the eerie looks that some of the subjects have, especially from the early and pre-20th century. Some invoke deep emotional responses, but they are all really fun and inspirational.

Moon Harassment.

I know I don't usually do a two post double-whammy in 24 hours, but check it--NASA is going to crash a spaceship into the moon tomorrow morning...ON PURPOSE. Why does this seem like a super costly and, um...Severely RETARDED idea? Oh, wait--yous guys just want to see if the explosion skyrockets ice, or other proof of water, into the air with the force of impact? Ohhhhhh...Of course. Resume your duties.

But seriously, isn't there an easier, SAFER and CHEAPER way to determine whether the moon has or can harbor life? I mean, all of this dick-happy moonplay has been going on for so long, and what has come of it, really? We put a flag on that shit, and floated around doing somersaults for a while. I think we could use that $79,000,000 down here on earth, people...

Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy

Babelgum New Urbanism Website

Last night, Tommy was perusing Digg and happened upon a link to Babelgum.com's New Urbanism section. He sent me links to a couple of cool videos on the site, and I have to say I am pretty impressed. A bunch of kids (young adults, I guess?) our age are farming vegetables on the rooftop of a New York City warehouse...Which I think is just about as cool as it gets. Also, there is a really cool episode on a "Waterpod," which is essentially a completely self-sufficient living/working/growing space made out of a barge.

Not to quibble too much, the affected "hipster" accent in episode 2, "Rooftop Farming" was pretty irritating. Can someone explain to me why, as soon as hipsters start growing a mustache and wearing unnecessary glasses, they have to develop a retarded monotone/accented voice, regardless of where they're from? Just talk normally, por favor...I will respect you more (and listen to what you are saying) more carefully. Also, I was a little irked that Annie in episode 2 said that "highly educated" people were now into farming. Opposed to whom? In-bred illiterate farmers from the backwoods? Not cool, hipster, not cool. But all details aside, I find these projects and ways of thinking to be really positive, and they excite me.

Wolff's Biergarten

I just wanted to brag about the delicious dinner I had tonight, and to shamelessly promote Wolff's Biergarten.

Wolff's is located at 895 Broadway, in downtown Albany, and the ambiance is that of a firehouse garage (which it is, literally) crossed with a backyard pig roast. There are white lights strung up on the ceilings, as well as (real?) trees and wooden picnic tables, which are basically what conjures up the outdoorsy feel. The large piles of peanut shells next to the seating honestly adds to the charm, making me feel like I could probably envision myself getting shit-faced there in an unprecedented way. (As of yet, there doesn't seem to be any heating in place, either, so the heavy drinking would definitely help one keep warm.)

To start with, I had a delicious German riesling wine (I forgot what kind, unfortunately, but there were only two kinds.) Tommy had the Erdinger Weissbier Dunkel (bottled) which was dark, thick, and went down smooth.

For dinner (which is ordered at a separate spot from the bar) I had Shwabische Rindsrouladen, which is essentially really thinly sliced steak wrapped around a combo of onions, pickles and bacon...With brown sauce on top. Let me just say about the brown sauce--HOLY SHIT. I don't know what they put in that stuff, but it's more or less the nectar of God's nut sack. Anyhow...Beneath the rouladen and said brown sauce, there was a very yummy pile of spätzle (chewy noodles made mostly from eggs, flour and water.)

Tommy had the bratwurst plate with sour kraut and German mashed taters. The bratwurst was good, as I expected, but the spuds were particularly top notch: Red potatoes WITH the skins kept on, as well as, I believe, bacon; combined with some sort of magical spice variety.

Sorry, vegetarians--this particular dinner was not for you. However, they do have something on the menu called "vegetarian currywurst" which sounds pretty interesting, and might warrant tasting.

All together our dinners and drinks were $36--pretty reasonable since there was enough leftover rouladen to make two meals. (Which, of course, I did.)

Oh yeah--and Wolff's rocks some pretty kick-ass music, too. I detected a six CD changer loaded with the likes of The Band, Janis Joplin, Van Morrison, Lou Reed, and...One other classic rocker, whose name currently escapes me. Anyway, frequent this place, people! I don't want to see it go the way of many other wonderful establishments in Albany...Straight out of business.

A Fantastic Way to Start the Day

I found this video posted this morning on one of my favorite blogs, "Happy LOL Day." Reading about stuff like this really inspires me--people lending a lasting helping hand in their communities. Not just by giving hand-outs like food (although that can also be nice) but by teaching people to do something, such as giving them seeds and teaching them to grow their own food, or in this case, giving children books and teaching them to read. Seeing things like this really gives me hope that the world is an inherently good place, and can get even better.

Another Little Something

I usually don't do two posts in one day, but this little movie seemed like a good nightcap. The animation is wonderful and I found the music really soothing and pretty. The moral/metaphor that I think the story is hinting at is also universal and comforting. I read about "Hedgehog in the Fog" in an interview with Hope Sandoval, the lead singer of Mazzy Star. She seems like a pretty cool chick, even based on her love of this video alone.

Just go with the flow, Hedgehog.

Buenas Noches, All...XOXO

A Little Morning Muse

I was checking my email this morning and remembered how much I love the Life magazine photo archive. If you are on the mailing list, they send you awesome featured photo sets once a week. Today I saw some really great pictures of burlesque dancers from the 1940's and '50's, Circus sideshows, and a set from the cross-global sailing trip done by the youngest person ever. (Zac Sunderland, who was 16 when he began the trip.) I think I have a new hero candidate in that dude. The circus photos are particularly awesome, though--I've always had a soft spot for any dress-up endeavor: