August 25, 2003
Bug eyed for Kournikova
Don't worry Jeff, we would act the same way around Ms. Kournikova.
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August 15, 2003
The Blackout
Some Blackout pictures via World New York Has commentary and photos as well as Text-America. Nice commentary via / . MeFi joins the commentary with an obligatory newsfilter thread and a link to the blackout history project.
Herself exclaimed last night that she always moves to New York after an emergency. The move is scheduled for Monday, and the last time Herself moved to the City was after September Eleventh. We are glad that she was not in that mess, and we were not also - being that we now have our papers and are cleared to emigrate to the city that now sleeps in darkness. The funny thing was, there were many people calling us to find out what we thought of this - being that we would be living there soon. We thought this was a perplexing question - but we think that the city handled it with grace and understanding.
However, we thought the media was just going bat-shit ove this. Who needs a recall in California, when a blackout in the biggest city in the US can eclipse it? What people forget, is that many journalists just love to talk about New York - when given an excuse to babble about thier city, it is never ending. So, when reporters started bringing up the fact that New Yorkers were being considerate and understanding during the emergency, I had to laugh. People like the rough-on-the-outside-soft-in-the-middle image of NY'ers and really want NY'rs to be nice. All of the stereotypes aside - the brash, fast, and angry view the world has of NY'rs - in the end, they are just people who want to get home.
And that is good enough for us.
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August 14, 2003
A call to Arms
This month's Metropolis Magazine is devoted to asking the fundamental question: is design school working, and educating a new generation of designers, or has it lost its relevance. As a recent graduate of the University of Cincinnati, I can say that design school - at least at UC - is entirely relevant. The questions posed in the graduate thesis studio were wide ranging in topic and scope. Of course not every student was preoccupied with posing, or questioning, ideas and concepts, which are fundamental to the design world at large. There were many who just wanted to graduate - thesis document and rigor be damned.
Yet, what struck me reading this month's Metropolis, was an article about how the public at large views architecture. And the fact that there is little to no popular discussion on important issues dealing with urban/suburban issues, the avant garde [or death of], and a general malaise of important issues dealing with built form. The only glimmer of hope was borne out of tragedy. The designs for the redevelopment of Lower Manhattan briefly brought design and architecture to the front pages of America. Yet the populace was unable to fully grasp the designs put forth, or to adequately criticize them.
There is not one course in middle or high school, which introduces the populace to the essential nature of design and architecture. No history linking the Greeks, the founders of democracy, with the city exist in the minds of the populace. For the Greeks, people were the city, and the city the people. There was no distinction. If one was to strike at the city, or build a structure that disrupted the city, it was a direct attack on the populace. This is no more - the disjunction between body and the city, which Richard Sennett discusses at length in Flesh and Stone, is complete.
With the lack of design knowledge and the disdain of design itself, it is up to us as design professionals to educate the populace. If you walk around and wonder why people shop at "big box" retail, or who drive H2's, or suburbanites who build chateaus in the middle of Ohio - do something about it!
As trained professionals, we must begin to write and disseminate material for the populace. Think of it as legal briefs, or brochures, or sound bites ranging on topics from sprawl to American Architects to the homogenization of America and the world. Small enough that people could read at a sitting or two, but packed with information and ideas. Think of a place where you could point your friends, your parents, or any of the laity. We must educate others on why design matters - from lifestyle issues to comfort to safety to efficiency - topics which can connect with the populace.
This will not be easy - who wants to sit down and write a short essay on the history of the open plan? Someone must be able to, and at the same time, distill history and ideas, which connect with people. Issues, which bring design, back into the limelight, must be addressed. The goal must not be to drag the laity into the realm of the professional, but to arm them with information and a critical eye so that they can make proper judgments. Or more Aztecs and McMansions will be churned out.
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Any questions?
Yes, we are getting back into Friendster after a 6 month haitus, and yes we know about the ongoing Fakester/Friendster War, and yes we think it is stupid, and yes we like it.
any more questions?
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August 12, 2003
Bizarro World meet the EPA via the Bush Adminishtration
Governor who champions highway through protected wetlands nominated for EPA head. Do they just think we are stupid? I mean really! Why not just dismantle the whole EPA system while we are at it?
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We <heart> The Gothamist
We have recently loved reading The Gothamist, especially with the intended move. Perhaps it is the third-person accounts, or perhaps the sly wit. We don't know, but it is good.
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August 8, 2003
Arnold should sit down, and shut up
Joe Conason asks the pertinent question:
Weren't the Republicans just telling us the other day that celebrities should keep their mouths shut about politics? Didn't they blast the Dixie Chicks, Janeane Garofalo, Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon and every other artist who spoke out about the war in Iraq? Wasn't the argument that fame doesn't confer experience, wisdom or competence?
But this is why I love California. Can you think of a better place than California, where Gary Coleman, Larry Flynt and Arnold are running for election? This is great! I really want to see a debate. And if they were smart, it would be on pay-per-view, and they all could make millions.
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August 7, 2003
Everybody, do the J-Lo
Has anyone noticed that all women singers of color now look like Jennifer Lopez?
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August 6, 2003
Sex in movies
On why Movie Studios have no backbone when it comes to sex in movies. [nytimes] Also, why do we as Americans will see Arnold blowing up somebody and cheer, but when we see any sort of kissing or lovemaking, we cringe?
Get a grip
August 5, 2003
Want to relearn the Roger Rabbit?
What better tool to teach you dance moves from junior high school, than the internet and motion capture models.» x « · Comments (0) · TrackBack
August 2, 2003
Disappearing Clouds in Carina
Ever felt like the universe was, well, out to get you?
BuyMusic.com is Stealing
BuyMusic.com [not linked because I do not support their company] is ripping off artists and stealing music to sell to windows users. Not only are they blatently ripping off Apple's iTMS, but they are selling a horrible product - you don't buy the music like you do with Apple, you just buy a license to use the music in one computer. If that computer goes bust, or you upgrade, or a whole host of other unforseen issues, you lose that music that you paid for, and BuyMusic will not refund or allow you to download another copy. Welcome to the Brave New World where you are treated like a criminal right off the bat, and you own nothing. That, and you are forced into a never-ending upgrade regimen with Windows Media Player, so the Deamon from Redmond has you by the balls for the rest of your life. Fun, huh?Mathowie has the right idea for a redesign.