So you think you have a complicated handshake/greeting with your boys? This video pays homage to that tradition. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vVge3CiE5uU]
Poison--that band with the long hair--looked on the vast musical landscape and thought, "Hey! Lets do JT's Sexy Back!" If you like to let your ears bleed every once in awhile, click here to check it out.
Good sunday boys and girls! I think it's safe to say that it is now officially summer. Graduations are over (congrats to those of you who graduated), warm weather is here, and summer love is abound. But if you find yourself unlucky in this area, don't despire America is here with a little song for all the lonely people.
[youtube=www.youtube.com/watch?v=NmcN7y7lRFM ]
This picture I took last night sums it up:
A free dinner on me to whoever can name where this was taken.
(Via) The circus drum beat of Paris Hilton goes on and on and on like the Energizer Bunny (yet another contrived lasting pop culture icon) and I'm loath to write about it now on my soapbox, but one aspect of her reappearance in court today was very interesting (aside from her tamper tantrum realization today that yes, our court system can be really unfair, even to rich, white girls).
The photographer who took the photo today of a tearful and distraught Paris sitting in the back of the police car also snapped one of the most iconic and symbolic photos of the Vietnam War.
Thursday, May 31
Nifty street "art."
Evidence of the splasher?
Hmmm.
Woa...a photo of a photo. Did your brain just explode?
Lea loves them street art.
And then we went to Don Hill's.
Gin and Tonic and Gin and Rummy.
One of these glasses costs 14 dollars and the other 200.
You never know when you need tanning 'accelerator.'
And then we went to Anchor Bar (ssshh don't tell people about it).
This photo is evidence of Lea's poor sport at getting her arse kicked by yours truly at gin.
Her ass was on fire, eg. burned from staying a bit too long in the tanning booth.
At the bar, some group was having a random pizza party. Of course Lea and I REALLY wanted some pizza at this point.
Success! (I apologize about the gross chewed up food in my mouth.)
You probably didn't know this but Tasti D Lite is the spot to hang out.
Lea, that isn't real! It's plastic!
It's a good night when you have a party wristband by 8 pm. I headed over to the third bar for the night: Babel. Because Cyrus was leaving to embark on the next leg of his life journey (two month layover in Boston, final destination Detroit), this was the final session of Thursday night Babel.
Peter and Cristina!
Florian, Peter and Henry enjoying the last free hookah...
Beth!
Jeff!
Middle finger!
Chloe!
Henry pulling a rare Blue Steel.
Cyrus himself!
Monica (and friend)!
VIV!!!!!!!!
Jeff and his ladies.
Mid party munchies to be fulfilled by the take out Chinese joint.
Mmmm.
And that is the last of the Thursday Night Babel Promotion by DJ Cyrus Cesa.
For all the photos from these parties, they are all collected here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/83466411@N00/sets/72157594373017602/
"I hate it when people put stickers all over their Apple laptops. It's like placing a gigantic sticker over some beautiful girl's face."
I was having a friendly debate with a friend the other day. She claimed to be an even bigger "dork" than myself. A many people have challenged my reigning status as the king dork and each time I have emerged victorious. I got really excited the other day about something that only bonafide dorks can get stoked over. I logged into my Flickr account and noticed the following:
Flickr is no longer in gamma stage!! I joined this photo hosting community years ago when it quite literally only had 100 members. Tear. The baby's all growns up. And guess what? It loves you (trademarked).
On my way to the Apple Store to get new headphones gratis Apple (the third pair I've gone through in the past six months), I spotted Sophia Coppola pushing her child on the corner of Mercer and Spring. We will now rejoin our regularly scheduled programming.
I was in Phoenix a couple weekends ago. I had never been there before. The trip in of itself was extremely unremarkable. And yet, despite that it marked a new chapter in the book of Matthew. (See, if I wrote Book of Matthew, that would be blasphemous. However, lowercase "book" makes it okay. Kosher.) Here are a few exciting photos from the trip:
Woohoo. Look at that scenery.
More exciting stuff.
Sunset.
Mmm, delicious food. Godfather lunch buffet. It tasted so much better when I was a kid.
Side Note: I saw a strip mall in Phoenix (which is dominant architectural theme of the area it seems) with these three businesses within it: "Yoga Tai Chi," "Edward Jones," and "Starbucks." One-stop yuppieville.
Yep, it's another edition of your favorite weekly Easy Listening Sunday. Some guys have all the luck, some guys have all the pain, some guys get all the breaks, and some guys get backhanded compliments like "I had to talk to you after I saw that you were wearing sneakers and skinnier than the usual jeans in this place."
Anyway, this might be one of the worst music videos ever, which makes it--follow the logic--one of the best music videos ever.
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hUC7IoW65hg]
Mental Floss magazine (What a dorky concept--I love it! Their tag line is "feel smart again.") has a top 15 list of reasons why iconic Mr. Rodgers was the "best neighbor ever." After reading their reasons about him, it's tough to disagree. I remember watching him when I had first moved to the U.S. and was instantly captivated by his show and his personality. I didn't understand, initially the words that were coming out of his mouth but I knew that it could be trusted. On a list of the most trustworthy public figures, everyone of all ages would probably put Mr. Rodgers somewhere in their top five. Side note (My ADD kicking in), here's my unscientific, totally gut instinct driven top 5 most trustworthy people in no particular order:
- Mr. Rodgers.
- Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
- Tim Gunn.
- Richard Branson.
- Obama Barack.
- Runner up: Post-election Al Gore.
Who's in YOUR top five dead or alive?
Anyway, I learned some new things about Mr Rodgers from this article. He was a really groovy man.
1. Even Koko the Gorilla loved him Most people have heard of Koko, the Stanford-educated gorilla who could speak about 1000 words in American Sign Language, and understand about 2000 in English. What most people don’t know, however, is that Koko was an avid Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood fan. As Esquire reported, when Fred Rogers took a trip out to meet Koko for his show, not only did she immediately wrap her arms around him and embrace him, she did what she’d always seen him do onscreen: she proceeded to take his shoes off!
2. He Made Thieves Think Twice According to a TV Guide piece on him, Fred Rogers drove a plain old Impala for years. One day, however, the car was stolen from the street near the TV station. When Rogers filed a police report, the story was picked up by every newspaper, radio and media outlet around town. Amazingly, within 48 hours the car was left in the exact spot where it was taken from, with an apology on the dashboard. It read, “If we’d known it was yours, we never would have taken it.”
4. He Saved Both Public Television and the VCR Strange but true. When the government wanted to cut Public Television funds in 1969, the relatively unknown Mister Rogers went to Washington. Almost straight out of a Capra film, his 5-6 minute testimony on how TV had the potential to give kids hope and create more productive citizens was so simple but passionate that even the most gruff politicians were charmed. While the budget should have been cut, the funding instead jumped from $9 to $22 million. Rogers also spoke to Congress, and swayed senators into voting to allow VCR’s to record television shows from the home. It was a cantankerous debate at the time, but his argument was that recording a program like his allowed working parents to sit down with their children and watch shows as a family. 5. He Might Have Been the Most Tolerant American Ever Mister Rogers seems to have been almost exactly the same off-screen as he was onscreen. Despite being an ordained Presbyterian minister, and a man of tremendous faith, Mister Rogers preached tolerance first. Whenever he was asked to castigate non-Christians or gays for their differing beliefs, he would instead face them and say, with sincerity, “God loves you just the way you are.” Often this provoked ire from fundamentalists. 6. He Was Genuinely Curious about Others Mister Rogers was known as one of the toughest interviews because he’d often befriend reporters, asking them tons of questions, taking pictures of them, compiling an album for them at the end of their time together, and calling them after to check in on them and hear about their families. He wasn’t concerned with himself, and genuinely loved hearing the life stories of others. Amazingly, it wasn’t just with reporters. Once, on a fancy trip up to a PBS exec’s house, he heard the limo driver was going to wait outside for 2 hours, so he insisted the driver come in and join them (which flustered the host). On the way back, Rogers sat up front, and when he learned that they were passing the driver’s home on the way, he asked if they could stop in to meet his family. According to the driver, it was one of the best nights of his life—the house supposedly lit up when Rogers arrived, and he played jazz piano and bantered with them late into the night. Further, like with the reporters, Rogers sent him notes and kept in touch with the driver for the rest of his life.
7. He was Color-blind Literally. He couldn’t see the color blue. Of course, he was also figuratively color-blind, as you probably guessed. As were his parents who took in a black foster child when Rogers was growing up.
This is my favorite: 8. He Could Make a Subway Car full of Strangers Sing Once while rushing to a New York meeting, there were no cabs available, so Rogers and one of his colleagues hopped on the subway. Esquire reported that the car was filled with people, and they assumed they wouldn’t be noticed. But when the crowd spotted Rogers, they all simultaneously burst into song, chanting “It’s a wonderful day in the neighborhood.” The result made Rogers smile wide.
A few other things:
9. He got into TV because he hated TV. The first time he turned one on, he saw people angrily throwing pies in each other’s faces. He immediately vowed to use the medium for better than that. Over the years he covered topics as varied as why kids shouldn’t be scared of a haircut, or the bathroom drain (because you won’t fit!), to divorce and war.
10. He was an Ivy League Dropout. Rogers moved from Dartmouth to Rollins College to pursue his studies in music.
11. He composed all the songs on the show, and over 200 tunes.
12. He was a perfectionist, and disliked ad libbing. He felt he owed it to children to make sure every word on his show was thought out.
I skipped over a few on the list. You can read the rest and see the sources and more here.
New York Academy of Art
Summer Exhibition 2007
Opening Reception: June 6, Wednesday 6 pm - 8 pm.
June 7 - July 18
1 pm - 7 pm, Daily.
Lawrence and Josephine C. Wilkinson Hall
111 Franklin Street, New York, NY 10013 (between Church St and West Broadway)
Some people have way too much time on their hands. God bless them. [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9bKAZDRi4o]
Broadway-Houston BDFV subway stop, 9 pm.
I liked the composition here and the color contrast between the classic punk rock-tank girl look juxtaposed with the summer dress worn by her friend. I also liked how the tattoo on her back gave her over-all vibe an intriguing twist.
Google just unveiled their latest addition to the Google Maps family. Its new "Street View" feature is DOPE. Of course, the first thing I did was enter my apartment address and got a nerdy thrill out of seeing it pop up.
1. There really needs to be a moratorium on people taking credit for "bringing sexy back." For one, those that say this are referencing a song from LAST year, which in the pop culture world pretty much makes it paleolithic. Second, I still haven't quite figured out what that means? I'm surprised that some twisted rapist (redundant?) on the stand in court hasn't said, "Judge, I was just trying to bring sexy back." So yea, people. Stop saying sexy back. Period. However DO feel free to repeat ad nauseam, "umbrella...ella, ella, eh, eh."
2. This is an old grievance of mine which I will address here in an open letter to all bands, musicians, and stand up comics: Dear bands, musicians, and stand up comics: No doubt you are all extremely talented, with some being more talented than others, please stop sending me friend requests on MySpace. I'm sure some people have discovered amazing new and unheard of bands on MySpace, I'm not one of those people. I prefer to have my music spoon fed to me by the recording companies, the iTunes Music Store's top selling list (Rihanna, "Umbrella!"), and friends. I'll let the masses and my friends act as my music filter. I prefer to use MySpace for. For. Hmmm, I have no idea what I use MySpace for, but I just don't want to be spammed by your attempt to harness me into your "fan base." Don't add me. I'll add you.
3. While I'm not quite sure why I "use" Myspace, my actual favorite social networking site Facebook is starting to become ridiculous with all this third party "applications" (basically web-based widgets) that you can now tack on to your profile. Just like the widgets for the macs, these applications cover nearly everything imaginable. One in particular I see potentially causing some problems. It's called "Your Hottest Friend" and I guess it lets you "rate" the "hotness" of your friends. Don't you love judging your friends! Myspace allows you to do this obviously with their "Top Friends" ranking.
3. Was watching Sports Center the other night at the hotel. There's something incredibly satisfying about watching Sports Center when travelling. It's an adult version of the blankie or teddy bear we carried around as a child. It reminds me of home as much as chicken soup or a snowstorm that dumps 10 feet of snow overnight.
4. Speaking of Sports Center, in particular I watched the highlights of a Yankees game against the Angels. The Angels' closer K-Rod struck out the last Yankee batter to save the game and after the ump's strike out call, he did this insane hip thrust of the likes I haven't seen since Wayne's World. Instead of high fives and fist pounds, more hip thrusts!
5. Summer is finally here. I know I'll get really sick of the 90 degree heat soon, but I just love it when at night, the temperate drops to the 70s with no humidity and a light breeze. I enjoyed my Monday night by getting some sorbet at my new favorite ice cream place near my apartment. The line was ridiculous--and they ran out of change, so people who only wanted one scoop ended up having to purchase four scoops, which the kids didn't complain too much about. Anyway, I sat on the benches in front of the shop, enjoyed the comfortable evening air and read my latest issue of the Economist (this magazine always drops some serious knowledge on me). It was quite perfect. Almost perfect.
When I first moved to the New York City and came upon my first street fair, I was enthralled. Wow. This is amazing. Look at all this food. All this culture. All these people. Amazing! I love New York City! I love everyone! And then I quickly learned that there's one every weekend in the summer all over the city. I quickly went from being a fan to a hater. Goddammit people, move! Ugh, look at all this crappy over priced street food that smells better than it tastes. Look at all this crap for sale. Do I really trust buying a dozen underwear from this guy for 3 bucks?
Then, the other weekend, I experienced my first Brooklyn fair. Well, this was wee bit bigger than the typical street fairs I experienced. It was some big thing for Park Slope, where I live. There was live music and the whole thing stretched for 30 blocks it seemed. All the restaurants on this stretch of 5th Avenue were selling food out front. My love of street fairs was reborn.
Anyway, I took some photos.
A cool puppy with blue eyes.
Pink is the new ice cream-candy truck.
Don't stop git it, git it.
"Next."
Mmm, peppers.
Three of the greatest crime fighters in comic books: Batman, Spidey, and Scooby.
Front row seat.
Living the cover band dream.
Oooh, artsy.
I'm a couple weeks behind on these segments. But better late than never. Cue some jackass saying, "That's what she said!"
Obligatory jump photo on my way to Cy's rapidly ending Thursday night party. Note the matching hoodie with baby blue socks. Totally unintentional.
"And this is how Mario jumped."
Yes, Kenny was there which always means one thing--nutty dancing.
These two demonstrate how to make the switch from corporate office wear to party wear: unbutton the collar shirt. And roll up the sleeves.
Monica!
Hookah technicians at work. "Must. Fix. Machine. Must. Get. Smoke."
Henry and Heidi accompany the DJ.
Hookah, vodka cranberry, sound making sticks (not sure what they are called...) = Fun.
Henry also busted out this musical monstrosity from his ever present bookbag o' music.
Haha.
I always knew Monica was a raver at heart. Haha.
Monica's friend getting down to the music.
Who can resist these things??
I love Henry's look in this photo. He's like "Of course I carry these things with me everywhere. Don't you?"
Heidi is going fierce with this thing.
This is one of the greatest, most hilarious things I've seen--it was like something straight out of those teen-movies from the late 90s and early 00s that always featured some synchronized dance sequence. That's what happened here. Kenny and Henry began the electric slide...and Cy and some of his other friends joined in...
That night, some random guy completely unconnected to us was having a rather large birthday party there. They saw this dance going on and one by one joined in as well (you can see them in the back in this photo).
The birthday boy in the blue suit and his friends are LOVIN the electricity of the slide.
It's tough to tell from the photos, but nearly the entire bar was in on it at this point.
Heidi is giving it her ALL. Look at that shoulder dip in!
Ooooh, that's some look she's giving Cy. haha.
And then Henry got a little side tracked.
Don't stop git it, git it.
Kenny is the master of the electric slide. Bow to the master.
AK-Bootie 7 getting tag teamed on the dance floor.