"New Amsterdam it's become much too much..."

I've been absolutely glued to my seat for this 8-disc documentary on New York that I recently Netflixed (directed by Ric Burns). I'm only on Episode 1 which tells of NY's founding by the Dutch, its beginnings as a commercial melting pot, its gruesome history with slavery, the crucial battles that took here during the Revolutionary War and the city's near complete destruction, its rebuilding/reinvention by a young Alexander Hamilton and his bargaining with Thomas Jefferson to relinquish NY as a "federal capitol" in exchange for "beaucoup capital" to relieve the city's war debts...anyways I could go on and on.

I HIGHLY recommend it to anyone who, like me, has aspirations of filling in woeful gaps of historical knowlege, but doesn't really know where to begin. It's really a great start! :)

Hold on to summer! Hold on tight!

Borrowed vacation image from this lovely blog    http://camillaengman.blogspot.com. 

Don't you wish you could talk to dogs so you knew what they were thinking?

A good and decent man

Ted Kennedy’s Eulogy for Robert Kennedy
"My brother need not be idealized, or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life, to be remembered simply as a good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it, saw suffering and tried to heal it, saw war and tried to stop it."

Simple and elegant words that I think can be applied to all the Kennedy brothers, but maybe most of all you, Ted. RIP

James Ensor

I became intrigued with James Ensor after reading a blurb about him in New York magazine. The MOMA is now showing a retrospective of Ensor--an avant-garde Belgian painter from the late 1800's. His paintings are amazing! Such vivid colors and wild subject matter. The above painting is titled Skeletons Fighting Over a Pickled Herring (1891).

Blackblack Black Black

I've been checking out this adorable band, Blackblack recently--en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackblack

"Diva Dompe started the band in 2004 with her sister Lola and boyfriend Alex Greenwald, who performed as his alter-ego "Clark Schädelkopf" in the context of the band. Schädelkopf means "skullhead" in German. The Dompe sisters are both daughters of Bauhaus drummer Kevin Haskins. They have channeled their fantastical and sci-fi leanings into their shows. Prepping for past gigs included dressing as if they were starring in the Ice Capades, crafting massive Native American headresses, and making vats of theatrical blood in the Dompe family kitchen for a Carrie-themed summertime barbecue at The Echo in Echo Park."

They sing simple songs about feeling lazy and depressed. What's not to like?

This band is not to be confused with Black Black chewing gum from Japan, which I also want to see in person. According to Wiki, the gum includes such unusual ingredients as grape sugar, oolong tea extract, ginkgo extract, chrysanthemum flower extract, coloring agents (cacao, gardenia) and caffeine. "The packaging contains some strangely phrased English on the label that reads, "HI-TECHNICAL * EXCELLENT TASTE AND FLAVOR". Some sticks also say "YES, CHEWING!"

I, for one, like my gum highly technical.

Speaking of men who can wear a suit...

(and who are also aging quite well) Wayne Coyne is no slouch either. I've been listening to a few new Flaming Lips songs and I'm really into them. I would love to see them if they weren't playing at that little cesspool they call Penn's Landing.

I am not Jesus, though I have the same initials.

Those are lyrics from one of my favorite Pulp songs "Dishes". Okay, so I don't have the same initials, BUT my parents were named Joseph and Mary.
I had wanted to post this entry on the eve of my 34th birthday, but had had some trouble. I 'd been humming it all week long especially the line, A man told me to beware of 33. He said, "it was not an easy time for me". I guess it won't be quite as poignant tonight as I am no longer 33 (yes, the age Jesus was when he died).
That Jarvis Cocker--such a wordsmith. And so foxy to boot. I posted the whole song after some photos of Mr. Cocker at his finest. That man can wear a suit.


Dishes-Pulp
I am not Jesus though I have the same initials -
I am the man who stays home and does the dishes.
And how was your day?
Is that woman still trying to do your head in?
A man told me to beware of 33.
He said, "It was not an easy time for me" but I'll get through

Even though I've got no miracles to show you.

I'd like to make this water wine
but it's impossible.
I've got to get these dishes dry.
Ah...

I'll read a story if it helps you sleep at night.
I've got some matches if you ever need a light.
Oh I am just a man
but I am doing what I can to help you.

I'd like to make this water wine
but it's impossible.
I've got to get these dishes dry.
Ah...

And I, I'm not worried that I will never touch the stars
'cos stars belong up in heaven
And the earth is where we are.
Oh yeah.

And aren't you happy just to be alive? Anything's possible.
You've got no cross to bear tonight. Ah.
No not tonight, Ah.
No not tonight, Ah.
I am not Jesus though I have the
same initials.

The Picture of Dorian Gray (Fox)

I love these handmade brooches from a chica in Spain! See her website here: http://depeapashop.blogspot.com/

Peeg!

Oh my god. This makes me miss Wink!!! Why did we never dress him up like this. I know--animal dignity, blah blah blah...

(photos courtesy of cuteoverload.com)

Festival!

Gabe and James and I are goin to see Dungen tomorrow night! YAW! It's about time I saw some Swedish rawk. I'm listening to them as I post this. When I listen to this band, I imagine playing the drums. And I rock it. Hard.

"Love Is...

If you grew up in the seventies, you probably remember these little glasses (based on a comic strip I guess). We had a couple at our beach house and they were my absolute favorite. It's so nice when you are little to have special things that you only use at the place you're visiting (like the beach, or your grandparents' house).

"Someday we'll find it...that evil government chemical conspiracy connection."

Thanks to my friend Zach for this brilliant post.

"What is oozing out of our ground?????"

I would love to carry you until you can walk again

Oh my lord I am so in love with this artist, Sophie Blackall, and her brilliant illustrations of "missed connection" ads.
Check them out on her blog: http://missedconnectionsny.blogspot.com/

Can't see the forest for the sands

Try as I might, I can't seem to get back to my blog these days. Maybe because I'm so computer-weary by the end of the day. Maybe because I'm out more these days 'cause it's summatime. I don't know. I feel sadly a little uninspired these days. A little lost. Maybe it's that I'm almost 34 and I'm trying to come up with the meaning of life. Or maybe just the meaning of my life? Sigh. Well, to lighten my mood, I thought I'd post some of these lovely pieces by artist Lauri Faggioni, possibly best known for her work in The Science of Sleep. http://www.laurifaggioni.com

(P.S. If this post had a soundtrack I think it would be Forest and Sands by Camera Obscura).