The Stars at Night are Clear and Bright, Deep in the Heart of Texas.

Mopac and 360 closed, man attempting suicide at the greenbelt

2009-07-28T06:05:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, was a good day to be a cyclist.

A 22-year old man with a gun, threatening suicide, was spotted at 3 pm on the Barton Creek greenbelt in Austin by a witness who called 911, according to the Austin American-Statesman. The SWAT team converged on the site and shut down both lanes of Mopac near 360 to handle the situation. In turn, all of Austin's traffic ground to a halt. Cars backed up from Mopac/360, the bottom edge of Austin, to 2222, a near edge in the north. Perhaps you know, perhaps you were in it. The steaming metal beasts of cars trickled along Austin's major highways and side streets with no option of speed. But the cyclists, they, reigned supreme.

I was in a car, heading southbound on Lamar home to Bouldin Creek. From work, at 2222, I heard traffic was a sludgy mess and tried to take side streets and Lamar instead. It barely worked. Scanning the radio for news, I finally found a local sports show devoting some time to discussing the standoff between police and the suicidal young man. I can't say I was glad to hear their thoughts. Their traffic reporter though, had insightful, compassionate things to say. She hoped the situation would be resolved and the young man would emerge unscathed, seek the help he needs and heal. Her co-hosts, chuckled over her well wishes with phrases like "I hope he does succeed! I hope the dude offs himself now and let's us re-open the highway." and, "Man, if you're going to commit suicide can you at least do it at home so we don't have to deal with it?!" Perhaps the best, "This guy doesn't really want to do it, he doesn't really. He's bluffing. But you know there are people in this traffic who now want to kill themselves!"

My car still sluggishly moving forward, I stared out at all the bikes, scores of them, zipping along on thin silver wheels. Beautiful, glinting objects flying along the sidewalk at warp speeds compared to us. This was no planned Critical Mass, just a bunch of cyclists who were doing the right thing.

The cars we all sat in were tremendous burdens. Too big for us, to heavy for us to just pick up and move to the side to scoot home. Yes, they kept us cool. Yes, their air conditioning was a welcome respite from the 101 degree air outside. But their engines are only making the climate warmer. The CO2 created yesterday from the entire city of Austin performing a spontaneous, enormous, collective idling "happening" across the city must have numbered in the hundreds of pounds. CO2 emissions from idling are real, see this primer and you'll stop idling your car at the train tracks or to warm it up in the winter.

The cyclists whipped past us, getting to their destinations on time, and arriving having put their muscles, bones, bodies to work. They arrived happy, upbeat, with quickened pulses, alive. The drivers were exhausted, frenetically giving up on getting home any time soon, while the cyclists played on bouyant tires, zinging past us.

I am putting my car to rest. It's bikes and buses for me. I won't contribute to continued global warming and global climate change. This heat will only get worse if we don't all radically change. And it's time. If you can't figure out how to put your car to rest, post a comment here and we'll help you make it possible.

Dolly Parton's Commencement Address at University of Tennessee

2009-06-07T09:24:00.000-07:00

A forever advocate for the gay community, an icon for drag queens, a gentle soul: Ms. Dolly Parton.

Here's a great video of her singing "Jolene" in 1974:

Dolly's introduction by Tennessee Governor Phil Bredesen for her recent Commencement Address at the University of Tennessee (see her speech below that):

Inspiring, palpably painterly work by Keiko Narahashi

2009-05-22T12:13:00.000-07:00

Keiko Narahashi's work is gentle, well tuned and tight as a drum. I stumbled on her work through a friend and found it such a pleasant surprise this afternoon. Here is a sampling of some of her work, below. But do go to her website to see more of her work and listings of her upcoming shows.

Keiko Narahashi holds an MFA from Bard and lives in New York. Her son, Micah Belamarich, is also an artist, though more of a graphic designer. He runs ONLY NY, a clothing brand, in addition to doing his own freelance work.

I'm a newly converted bus rider. Join me.

2009-05-13T16:54:00.000-07:00

I now ride the bus to and from work because it became too ridiculous not to. The number five bus rolls up 100 feet from my house in the morning and 45 minutes later rolls in twenty feet from my office. I have no excuse.

I went on Capital Metro's website and found this commuting calculator that fully validated my desire to save money and the environment by riding the bus. Through a bunch of data I filled in, it calculated I spend $197 a month commuting to my job nine miles north of my house. That's $2373 a year I could be using for much more interesting things than a car. Like gaycations!! In the present too, the bus gives me more of an opportunity to draw, write, read, watch movies, listen to music, meditate, etc. because I'm not on Mopac navigating the highway like a zen surfer in a metal rocket on tires.

I am also now predictably on time! My own car could wait for me indefinitely as I changed outfits three times, but the bus will leave me behind if I don't hustle. Now I arrive at work at 8:45 daily, as smoothly as a clock.

Riding the bus thusfar has produced: 2 poems, 3 small painting/drawings, the reading of two books, and the rediscovery of ancient gems in my iTunes including thought-provoking slam poems by the Suicide Kings and Saul Williams left over from my performance poet days. Too, my sense of connection to humanity and interest in learning about others has been effortlessly heightened as I sit next to blind teenagers and aging construction workers, professionals in ties and high heels bound by their laptop cases, young men headed to school or jobs who shout and laugh in Hindi while riding for only a few stops and then departing, and so on.

The seclusion of our automobiles can feel like a cozy, moving shrine at times, or an extension of ourselves, but during other times, like 5:30 pm Mopac rush hour, cars can feel like boxy weights holding us back from the joy of home. I'm glad to be moving in a new direction. Try it out. I'll see you on the bus.

(This Friday, May 15th, is Bike to Work Day. Many local bike-loving businesses are providing breakfast for the cyclists: see a map of all the food stops here.) I'll be riding!

German Money Ad Doing it Raw

2009-05-07T08:53:00.000-07:00

Wow Germany. Thanks for this compelling ad?

NOM and R.I.M., saving straight marriage one awkward acronym at a time.

2009-04-22T13:09:00.000-07:00

First, do your research:
1. NOM ad about "the gathering storm" of gay marriage. And, the rainbow coalition of people gathering to "protect us from gay marriage:"

2. The audition videos for hilarious NOM video above:

And now, the main event:
3. Amazing. Thank you thank you gay actors, and straight actors. Thank you for your comedic literacy and perfect wit:

A Gaythering Storm from Jane Lynch

4. And finally, another little gem from Rachel Maddow:

Gay Slurs Lead to Child's Suicide

2009-04-18T09:46:00.000-07:00

I found this tremendously important to watch and think about. Hearing this story too, makes me glad Austin has organizations like OutYouth, to help our young people with self-acceptance and raise the understanding, acceptance and celebration of diversity in Austin as well. There's so much further we could go, but at least we have resources to work with.

Susan Boyle

2009-04-13T09:35:00.000-07:00

I just saw this clip from Britain's Got Talent and joyfully started crying at work.

Susan Boyle is a 48-year old Scottish woman who aspires to be a singer. After her performance on Britain's Got Talent it's clear that goal will become a reality soon. Enormous congratulations to her today.

Snuggie Pub Crawl

2009-04-05T10:04:00.001-07:00

Maybe Austin needs one of these. The drawback is that you have to actually buy a Snuggie. Which is a HUGE drawback.

I prefer the mobile gay bar. But I do want to see pictures of this: Snuggie Pub Crawl, Chicago.

The nice thing is the proceeds from tickets sales to the Snuggie Pub Crawl go to the AC-Orphanage in Tanzania, an orphanage that houses and supports children whose parents have died of HIV/AIDS or TB.

(Never heard of the Snuggie? See my old post about it here: Creepy Blankets).

Tara Mateik

2009-03-31T12:24:00.000-07:00

Great video by Tara Mateik.

See more of his bright, smart, compelling work here.

Dartmouth's Next President, First Asian-American to Lead an Ivy-League

2009-03-31T12:16:00.001-07:00

I am incredibly pleased with Dartmouth's choice of Dr. Jim Yong Kim as the next president of the college. His life work is inspiring and his presence luminous. Read NYTimes article about it here.

Ward Shelley, Living in a See-Saw Named Stability

2009-03-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

Right now at the Lawrimore Project in Seattle, artists Ward Shelley and Alex Schweder are living in a weighty architectural sculpture for their piece "Stability."

The see-saw hangs from its middle in a large, empty, gallery space and tips up and down as its human inhabitants move about their temporary living quarters. The two artists speak of how they have learned to cooperate in this great short feature on NPR's All Things Considered: Listen here. Or watch an NPR video feature on it here.

Lesbians on Ecstasy Video

2009-03-22T09:58:00.000-07:00

Brilliant video in its simultaneous comedy and earnest love, and right right song. Lezzies on X are a gay, electronic group based out of Montreal.

Witch playing at 3 am, Lamar Pedestrian Bridge

2009-03-21T00:00:00.001-07:00

Tonight, metal band Witch (Kyle Thomas, J Mascis, Antoine Guerlain and others), are playing at 3 am on the Lamar Pedestrian Bridge. They are the SHIT.

J Mascis is performing with Dinosaur Jr. at other times and Kyle is performing as King Tuff but this is their one show as Witch during SXSW 2009.

CocoRosie and their insulated world

2009-02-15T09:56:00.000-08:00

I watched two interviews with CocoRosie and was struck by their disconnected behavior, as if somehow in their connection to each other and their art-music, they are unable/disinterested in connecting with the rest of the world. As a being who is interested in connecting to as many others in the world as possible, and doing so intentionally, I was disappointed to feel this disconnect from them. I love many of their songs, but did not love this. Watch them here, in order:

The first (can't embed).

The second:

They speak of their desire to insulate themselves from the world, create a private space, to make their music from. And this "artists as isolationists" belief is a thread that runs through all time and into the current moment. But I disagree with it heavily now. I do not see it as responsible to create art out of that space. I see it as intentional obliviousness. Willful ignorance of the scope of events going on in the world today. To me, artists, musicians, cultural creators, have an obligation to inform themselves of the contemporary world and history, of philosophy and realities, and then make their new works to further the dialogue or illuminate a problem, or even the best, solve one!

Art, music, culture, is our gift to the world and if we use it only to distance ourselves, or mock the present world as is, we are mis-using our gifts. We are taking advantage of capitalism to support our selfishness. We are feeding our egos.

A very bright article in the New York Times today, by Holland Cotter, has inspired me to think with optimism on how the art world can become. How this economic upheaval can create a whole new way of thinking and making. It's beyond inspiring. Read his absolutely articulate, wise article, "The Boom Is Over. Long Live The Art!" here.

New Video, Anthony Hegarty

2009-02-07T11:31:00.000-08:00

As usual, Anthony Hegarty, of Anthony & the Johnsons, has a smoke-filled haunt of a beautiful voice. Worthwhile, albeit a bit cheesy, video to watch below:

Jodie Harsh, London character created by Jay Clarke

2009-02-07T09:34:00.000-08:00

Jodie Harsh, recently featured as one of Out's 100 most influential people in 2008, made this dryly hilarious video of herself and friend Scottee interviewing a zookeeper at the London Zoo.

Creepy blankets

2009-02-05T21:52:00.000-08:00

Oh my god, the Snuggie. I am definitely barfing in my mouth, but more than that, it's the sur-reality (as in, less than reality) of American culture present in the Snuggie promotional video that amazes. With the vast array of real life dilemmas, interpersonal conflicts, religious warfare, hunger, homelessness, greed, that are prevalent in this world, one would think the focus would be on fixing those, rather than making sure mom's arms don't get briefly cold from reaching for the portable phone while watching TV on the couch under a blanket.

We should not be this comfortable!

Don't watch this parody until you've first watched the real thing (above), and barfed a little in your mouth too, but then watch this parody.

And then after watching that parody, watch this parody:

Cult robes aside, the Snuggie is cheap and supposedly you'll then turn your thermostat down and just wear your blanket around. Perhaps there is some spend-thriftyness with an eye towards the economic downturn and awareness of global climate change in this product and its marketing?

Nawwwww----
it's just a blanket, that's creepy.

Cornify it up

2009-02-05T13:15:00.000-08:00

Just click it. And just keep on clicking it until you fall backwards from the bubbling glitterweight of the unicorns and rainbows.

For an explanation see: Cornify.com

In Appreciation of Steve Martin

2009-02-02T18:39:00.000-08:00

This man can do everything with masterful grace. I'm not saying his banjo playing is incredible, but you try being an acclaimed comedian then actor, then writer/director and now musician? I can't even remember to water my garden. Let's all get to work. If everyone worked like Steve Martin, our culture would be a bustling boom of perpetual learning and joy. Go get to work!

Austin has a sushi train now! And it's tasty.

2009-01-28T20:18:00.000-08:00

Finally, the vibe of a big city has parked its techno-food savvy ass on Austin soil.

Korea Garden on N. Lamar just remodeled and installed a sushi train. When my girlfriend and I walked in tonight we were surprised by the scene: the band Corto Maltese was just leaving as we arrived, tiny hipsters from UT filled a row at the conveyor belt, and, 75% of the patrons were gay. We ordered a hot pot of green tea and took our perch at the counter between a middle-aged, gay male couple on our left and an awesome, quirky student and her friends on our right.

Korea Garden has been around for a while and serves up Chronicle/Statesman lauded Korean food, but the sushi conveyer belt is a new addition. Called a kaiten-zushi in Japan, the metal conveyor belt slickly delivered lots of nigiri sushi, goma wakame (seaweed salad), a few eel rolls, a few california rolls, desserts, and even house salads with ranch dressing on them. Though it would seemingly be fully unexciting to eat an iceberg/ranch dressing salad off a sushi train, Korea Garden's house salad was delicious. The radish sprouts, avocado, carrot and cucumber slivers spiced it up to an enticing level.

When I lived in New York I frequented a sushi restaurant with a conveyor belt like this between Union Square and Gramercy Park (17th and Broadway?) and loved it. Prices were based on the color of the plate, a format Korea Garden will be moving to after tomorrow. For now though, for its opening week, Korea Garden is running a special: all plates $1.50 each! Get it cheap while you can.

Back to the bar around the conveyor belt, an awesome behavior was happening amongst the patrons. In true Austin fashion, as soon as diners sat down they became part of a collective conversation. You can't put Austinites in the same goddamn space as each other and facing each other without a ton of friendly banter. The sushi train I went to in New York was more like a bar; you faced the sushi chef/server. At Korea Garden, you face other patrons. And, inevitably conversations strike up over the sushi and over who wants what as the plates slowly make their way down the line.There's already a Missed Connection about the sushi train! I think it's arrived. And, I think Austin has arrived in some small way. Hear me out on this one: Clearly the young'uns, gaymos and artists have been waiting for this; a new city trinket that facilitates the same gentle friendly Austin has possessed all along.

Happy Birthday Jackson Pollock

2009-01-28T08:05:00.000-08:00

In honor of Jackson Pollock, and with deliberate attention towards the fun of creating inky drip paintings on a web page far surpassing the fun of reading Pollock's fairly troubled biography, I post this: Make your own drip paintings!

1968 Mexico Olympics Poster

2009-01-27T13:51:00.000-08:00

In researching for work, I found this op-art-ed out fly poster by Lance Wyman from the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. You can purchase it from the Victoria & Albert Museum Shop in the UK here. Lance Wyman's graphics for the 1968 Olympics are across the board righteous. See more of his design work on his website. To see especially his Mexico City Olympics graphics, click on the Mexico Olympics logo near the middle.

Lady Gaga, that's some good fashion

2009-01-27T13:42:00.000-08:00

Why I gotta love this so much? The guilt. But I do.

Obama is a constant happy surprise

2009-01-26T14:42:00.000-08:00

I had forgotten what it was like to be pleased with what one's government's actions. Never in my adult life had I experienced the U.S. government creating legislation that was cognizant of global climate change and working progressively to curb it, or acting to cease detainment/torture of prisoners on foreign soil without probably evidence. All this in the first week? Thank you Obama.

From the NYTimes:
Obama's Order is Likely to Tighten Auto Standards

Animal Collective's video for "My Girls"

2009-01-25T13:24:00.000-08:00

D-dang. Sometimes there is a thing that at first you wish would hurry up and get over with, but then it drags you in slowly, submerges you in its soupy washing machine brand of lovemaking and suddenly you're like, "I like this!" in a way that surprises even you.

I guess that just happened to me, with this:

Inauguration Poem for Obama, on Inauguration Day

2009-01-20T06:11:00.000-08:00

As we watch the Inauguration with joy today, a re-post of my poem celebrating Obama's victory, the beauty of our collective connected humanity, and the conscious evolution we are undertaking.

Austin Celebrating in the Streets On Election Night After Obama Won!

2009-01-19T17:10:00.000-08:00

A compilation of videos from the post Obama victory melee in downtown Austin, outside the Driskill on November 4th, 2008. My poem (posted above), "Above the Streetlights; The Night Obama Won," is a rumination on that night, what it meant for all of us, and what it will mean in our futures.

I'm glad for the bottom up media that documented that night and got these videos onto YouTube. It was a beautiful street party that night in Austin; jubilant beings finally feeling empowered and inspired by their government. Look at the people in the crowd laughing, dancing, hugging each other. And I've never seen radical young people sing the national anthem or wave a flag before!

Terapeak!

2009-01-18T09:20:00.000-08:00

I never sell things on eBay so I'm discovering Terapeak a bit late, but I love it.

I just went on eBay to list a Dansk pepper mill that I bought here in Austin. I typed in "Dansk pepper mill" in the Terapeak search engine that's hosted on the eBay main page. Terapeak analyzed the last three weeks of Dansk pepper mill eBay auctions and said the average value they sold for was $80, and the 26 sold in the last three weeks sold for between $0 and $411. Yes. Thank you simplicity.

And thank you to the Terapeak nerds who thought up such a smart, smart creature of software.

MLK Day of Service in Austin

2009-01-16T22:53:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow is the Martin Luther King Day of Service for the United Way and its partner agencies. The non-profit I work for runs Top Drawer Thrift and we'll be with a volunteer crew of ten people overhauling the back room and re-organizing the store so we can put out more donations.

Michelle and Barack Obama have been e-mailing their supporters, as you have no doubt noticed, encouraging them to participate in a nationwide day of service in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.. The day of service honors his commitment to service and non-violence.

Let's get out there and do some good work!

Luzinterruptus's Recent Installation in Madrid

2009-01-16T22:32:00.000-08:00

I just saw Luzinterruptus's January 5th installation around Madrid, Acomodate y Lee, on Art MoCo and spent more time looking at the photos on their blog. Each installation consisted of a blue light, most (all?) with antique lampshades, and a book on a string. They were little reading nooks carved out all over the city. The reading nooks were installed in niches as odd as a condom machine, or as clear as next to homeless person's bedroll on the sidewalk.

A very interesting intervention. I'm always drawn to private space insertions into public space or transformation of public space into private. This is a fairly well thought out one. Their other work is equally competent and alluring. Check it out on their blog.

Solargraph

2009-01-16T14:35:00.000-08:00

This is an incredible solargraph made by Justin Quinnell. Image is copyright Justin Quinnell. Click here to go to the NASA site with more info on the origin and making of the image (in a soda can pinhole camera!).

Birthday Card for My Sister.

2009-01-16T05:54:00.000-08:00

Dang, Coroflot!

2009-01-15T21:18:00.000-08:00

There is some seriously persuasive design on Coroflot right now. Coroflot is a portfolio, networking and resume site. The site connects creative professionals with design jobs worldwide. It's a rewarding, fleshy little (big) website.

My friend Blake Almstead, a student in the Cranbrook 2D department, has some of his work on Coroflot. I'm especially drawn to his projection piece on vellum, Binocular Dystopia. Remarkably appealing texture, hint of interrogation video, great scale and choice of materials. Well done Blake.

Coroflot allows you to sort by "most likeys," specialities, most popular this week, and new members. It's a great format and I'll be perusing it like an elitist aesthete stalker for weeks, no doubt.

Anna Sian

2009-01-12T19:45:00.000-08:00

Anna Li Sian has just started a site for her photographic works and poetry. Here's a link. It's still under construction but you can get a sense of her skillful eye.

Anna's poetry is tremendous. She and I used to perform together a lot at Dartmouth with Soul Scribes and I miss her poetic presence as a nearby collaborator. Here's a link to some of her older work (from 2005). Here's a more recent posting of her poetry, that includes a bio. She currently lives and works in NYC.

Dave Chappelle's Television Debut

2009-01-12T19:21:00.000-08:00

This Dave Chappelle standup has a delicate vintage flavor like a fine, fine comedic wine. Delicious.

Katt Williams is a Genius-Being

2009-01-09T06:03:00.000-08:00

In Honor Of Joseph Beuys, How to Explain Pictures to a Dead Hare

2009-01-08T17:09:00.000-08:00

"To make people free is the aim of art. Therefore, art for me is the science of freedom."

-Joseph Beuys

German artist Joseph Beuys's performances, sculptures and drawings, remain contemporary and relevant to me. I feel deep appreciation for his art: his felt wrappings, "discussions with dead hares," his "actions" (happenings), use of fat, use of honey, and disquieting, though noble, performance with a live coyote in an enclosed space. I saw a drawing of his at MoMA once (the link takes you to a different one, can't find the one I saw) that reminded me of the quiet radicalism and simple beauty of his work. Beuys's line is both gentle and direct. It speaks to his own shamanic presence. Here's another piece from the MoMA collection that I feel affinity towards: Eurasia Siberian Symphony 1963.

Too, Joseph Beuys's radical political fervency was grand, his teaching was devoted and his life an amalgam of intriguing chosen experiences. His time spent in the military created a mythic history of being rescued by Tartars in Crimea in a plane crash and rubbed in fat, then wrapped in felt to heal. That mythology was a loving assistant for his material choices. As I remember it, later in life he became a political activist and even assisted in the founding of the Green Party.

Beuys died in 1986 at the age of 65.

All this to say, wonderful artist.

Now in honor, watch this video!:

Above the Streetlights Poem with an ASL Interpreter

2008-12-29T13:22:00.000-08:00

Dave Pokorney was also filming my poem at the Vets for Peace Concert. Here's his video, from Vimeo. Diane Delange is the incredible ASL interpreter next to me. Thank you Diane.

Bill Massie's American House 08

2008-12-27T12:57:00.000-08:00

Bill Massie, head of Architecture at Cranbrook, has designed and built a beautifully lyrical, modern, pre-fab home called the American House 08.

Above is a photo from the Cranbrook website, of the house during assembly.

In its finished state, walls undulate and light glows from porous segments. Texture, material and form interplay. The roof dips down becoming a seat (the truest extension of A Pattern Language's suggestion that part of a roof be reachable from human height).

The American House 08 was installed on the lawn of the Cranbrook Art Museum, in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, this summer during an exhibition at the museum, on Massie's work.

When I was a student at Cranbrook, Bill Massie gave a lecture on his work and discussed the intricacy of the development of his designs. His process is unique in that he owns a warehouse in Pontiac, Michigan (a formerly thriving auto manufacturing town that now has seen better days, like most of Michigan) in which he is able to assemble his designs in pieces and walk through them, spending significant time in them as he goes along. This allows the flexibility of experiencing the space in 1:1 scale, and making changes, as you create it; a smart and necessary idea to me.

An article with great photos of the finished American house 08 is featured in the current issue of Dwell magazine.

The Cranbrook Architecture Department is a fifteen person crew of some great, creative architecture heads; there's a lot of interesting experimentation and materials research going on there. Bill Massie, as the department's Artist-In-Residence (department head), certainly leads this effort well.

Above the Streetlights

2008-12-24T11:11:00.000-08:00

My most recent poem, with mention of Austin at the beginning, performed at a Veteran's for Peace benefit concert in Gainesville, Florida.

Prop 8, the musical

2008-12-23T07:58:00.000-08:00

How did I miss this before?

I like it!

"Prop 8 - The Musical" starring Jack Black, John C. Reilly, and many more... by Jack Black

Joshua Allen Harris Street Art Piece

2008-12-16T10:06:00.000-08:00

This street art piece by Joshua Allen Harris makes me nostalgic for New York. I only feel that way because I miss casual encounters with intelligent art. Notice the folks on the street who just happen to be walking by and get to have their day marked by stumbling upon these inflatable pieces on the street.

It would be interesting to create a similar thing in Austin, based on Town Lake/Lady Bird Lake. Perhaps the flow of the water could push kinetic sculptures, or the sun could heat up air inside an inflatable causing it to expand and contract.

The Graffiti Abatement Program here is very quick to paint over all the graf art and street art murals that get painted up around town, but street art pieces that are three -dimensional would perhaps be more enduring.

Thank goodness for the internet and the oddness it cherishes.

2008-12-15T20:32:00.001-08:00

image above is from hel-looks.com

On Halloween a girl took a picture of me and said "before you know it, you'll be an internet meme." I'm not one yet but there seem to be a million other internet fashion beings out there rocking memes.

The profusion of internet sites documenting out-there (and yet mainstream) contemporary fashion is real. Lookbook.nu is a compendium of photos of outfits submitted by stylists and clothing nerds from around the world. It's an invite-only site, but one can also apply to be part of the site. The invite/apply part is an interesting creation that I'm sure has generated some cravings amongst folks wanting exclusivity. In general though, there are some amazing and interesting things going on on Lookbook, especially for these amped-experimental-fashion starved Austin eyes.

Connected to LookBook, I found HEL LOOKS, a similar website though all the photos are taken by one person. On HEL LOOKS I found the coolest 11 year old fashionista of the world. Note that she says her hat is from a rock festival in China. She is either a very old soul or has some super cool parents. Perhaps she is the combined mixture of the reincarnated souls of Mama Cass, Janis Joplin and Gianni Versace. With self-awareness around fashion like this, how could she not be?

2008-12-09T12:08:00.000-08:00

Dark Friday: Wal-Mart Employee Trampled to Death

2008-11-28T10:38:00.000-08:00

It's been time to re-think our brand of capitalism for a while, but this story is pretty pure evidence of our need to enhance empathy for others and tone down competitive consumerism.

New York Times Article: Wal-Mart Employee Trampled to Death by Customers

You may think that situation sounds absurd and you would never be a part of something so crazed, but really how often are we passive parts of this same system that creates behavior like the aforementioned? Let us stand up for something better in each small situation in which money and materials take precedence over cooperation and compassion so that larger, more obvious examples, like a Wal-Mart stampede, never occur.

A local example of this can be found at Blue Hanger (the Goodwill outlet on Springdale) when the employees are re-filling the bins and people wait like eager lions ready to elbow each other out of the way once they're allowed to start grabbing items. Just watch, and feel what it feels like instead to be a serene presence amongst that mayhem. See how it affects others and see how the feeling of competition even affects you when you're there. We are all connected! Let's start acknowledging it with our behavior!

Dance People!!

2008-11-25T20:14:00.000-08:00

I love Gloria Estefan for her fearless hottie-bear-ness in this video.

Why is she so contemporary stylie in this white silken jacket and jumpsuit?

Sadly I can't embed it. But here's the link:

Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine, "Conga"

Transgender Day of Remembrance, Austin

2008-11-23T16:59:00.000-08:00

November 20th was TENT's (Transgender Education Network of Texas) Austin vigil at City Hall for International Transgender Day of Remembrance. Transgender Day of Remembrance is a day in honor of the lives of people who were killed because they did not conform to traditional gender norms. Some of those killed identified as transgender, transsexual, or none of the above, some dated someone who identified as something other than the traditional gender binary and were killed for doing so.

Each attendant was given a glow stick instead of a typical vigil candle. This proved to be a very sentimental symbol, as my sweetie and I still have our glow sticks sitting in our room and their glow fades a little more each day.

TENT's vigil honored those who were murdered for their radical gender identities by having twenty-nine empty chairs on the stage, one for each person murdered for their gender identity in 2008. At the very end of the vigil, one of the organizers read the full 2008 TDOR Names List, and as each name was read, someone from the crowd came up and sat in one of the seats. Live, human bodies, transgender, transexual, beautiful beings in varying expressions of gender, emerged from the crowd to populate the chairs. They then sat in silence and we all soaked in the reality of these killings.

There is still no legislation banning hate crimes based on gender identity. Some states still do not have legislation protecting transgender people from job discrimination. As a sidenote, Vermont, is the only state in America that has never had an anti-transgender murder occur in it.

East Austin Studio Tour Recommendations

2008-11-23T07:19:00.000-08:00

Of the art I saw yesterday on the East Austin Studio Tour, I was most impressed with the work of Yale MFA grad and San Marcos, TX-dweller, Annie Simpson. She's a guest in the studios on Bolm Road this weekend.

The work Annie is showing at the Bolm studios is all maritime, figurative, and extremely well-made. The video above, from her website, is a great introduction to what you'll see. Annie Simpson's work at the Bolm studios includes intricate pencil drawings of ships, oil paintings of ship captain-esque hot lezzies, and large black and white oil paintings of waves. All the work is oceanic in some form except a patterned pink and green canvas that Annie threw in for fun. Her mastery of the craft of painting is abundantly evident and I highly recommend going to see her work.

Other highlights of the tour include:

-Basically all the Big Medium artists, (on Bolm Rd) with the biggestmedium nod to Joseph Philips' paintings/drawings of remaining wilderness being hemmed in and propped up by plywood in the emptiness of white voids.

-Emily Hoyt and Debra Broz (with an emphasis on her revised porcelain figurines actually), both at the Pump Project Art Complex.

-Most of the work at the MASS gallery on Springdale, with a huge special emphasis on a collaborative piece by Anthony Romero and another artist involving hair, orange flowers and a contact paper covered box that seemed to reference a speaker box. It was a fucking gem of greatness. That's my review.

-Co-Lab_A New Media Project Space, had a fun, collaborative piece going on if you want to get to make some art in the midst of looking at so much.

As a sidenote, this google map of E.A.S.T. is just so good looking.
Out to see more today.

Adrienne Brabham is nice and different.

2008-11-19T20:14:00.001-08:00

detail
Originally uploaded by niceisdifferent

Adrienne Brabham, an Austinite living outside Detroit and attending Cranbrook Academy of Art, has just started Nice is Different, a blog for her work. Her etsy store already features small items of her work for purchase: felt pins, drawings and fabric-art wall-pieces, etc.

Now, her larger, Cranbrook, studio work is up for view. She's only posted one piece so far, but it's worth investigating further. A conglomeration of small drawings on paper and fabric, the wall worth of installation is a beautiful representation of Adrienne's unique aesthetic rubric. Soak it up with your eyes!

Adrienne's sweetie, Scott, is the lead singer of the local indie dance band the Black and White Years. The band has a show coming up at Emo's on December 11th. Go see them and dance. The B&WY go on at the Independent Workforce Christmas Party that night at 8:20 pm.

Opalescent blue slug penises!

2008-11-19T19:34:00.000-08:00

If you've never seen this video, it's time:

Oh that is good.

2008-11-19T19:20:00.000-08:00

Now for some really good bug videos:

Beyonce as Sasha Fierce

2008-11-18T21:16:00.000-08:00

Here's my version of a VICE Do & Don't:

DON'T- Beyonce as "Sasha Fierce," her alter ego who is "wild" and out there with French writings on her myspace page and a robot hand as the profile picture, oh my! It was myspace hype for maybe ten minutes as her marketing team of hundreds tried to get people to care....

How did no one, on the long line of thousands who were part of this marketing effort, see "fierce" for what it is: a co-opt from Christian Siriano, who ripped it off from Tyra Banks, who probably sniped the gay cliche off one of her photographers...? How did no one vet that and find something actually interesting and original?

And what's more:
Beyonce is a good being,
but the corporate heads who thought this shit up are ignorant balls of capitalism at its most lackluster.

This is consumerism actually begetting something so un-art it hurts art just to look at it.

Photos of the Proposition 8 Protest in Austin

2008-11-15T16:19:00.000-08:00

My photos of the Proposition 8 protest in Austin at City Hall. To see them at a higher resolution, click on "link" which will take you to the photo hosted on my flickr page.
For more photos see the Austinist's post.

Organizers said there were about 3,000 people in attendance. It was a big and nicely varied crowd. Kate X Messer, of the Chronicle's Gay Place spoke at the very beginning but I missed it.

I arrived as a ten year-old boy was speaking. That was my favorite part of the protest. He had lesbian moms and talked about how he wanted his moms to be able to be married. He spoke on the definition of a "normal" family in the U.S.: a married dad and mom, with kids. He said that if that's "normal" then only 23% of families in the U.S. are normal and all the other types of families: kids raised by grandparents, single moms, single dads, gay dads, lesbian moms, transgender parents, must all be queer! Which means, the majority of families in the U.S. are queer, just like his family! Precious. He made a great point.

There were activists in attendance passing out flyers to get domestic partner benefits at the University of Texas at Austin, and young artists selling t-shirts they had silkscreened that morning that said "Texas Queers" on them. A remarkable number of dogs were present at the protest (see the photo above of matching lesbo chihuahuas in a stroller) and lots of really cool little kids who have great parents (see photo of baby in slideshow above). The baby's mother told me this was the baby's first protest of many to come.

At the official end of the march, some younger homos, likely UT kids, led the crowd off down the street in a march along Guadalupe, over on 4th by the gay bars and then up Congress to stop at the Capitol building for a bit before heading back. Lots of great chants happened and traffic certainly enjoyed the show. As we passed Rain on 4th, (incidentally it is owned by a straight man but he's an incredible gay ally and supporter of Project Transitions) and as we passed Oil Can Harry's, the doormen of both places thanked us for marching and cheered for us.

Austin Proposition 8 Protest

2008-11-15T08:37:00.000-08:00

The protests are occurring nationwide at the same time. 1:30 PM EST all the way to 8:30 AM in Hawaii. To find the protest nearest you, to upload photo or video of the protests or get more information go to: JointheImpact.

Check back here later today for my photos and documenta of the Austin event.

In Austin the protest will be at City Hall:
301 W 2nd St
Austin TX

To see more of Lydia Marcus's work, see her blog, Fotonomous.

Protests against Proposition 8 Today

2008-11-15T08:10:00.000-08:00

Today in Austin, at City Hall, at 12:30 PM there will be a rally and protest against the passing of Proposition 8 in California (and Proposition 2 in Florida, Proposition 102 in Arizona, and a measure in Arkansas banning gays and lesbians from adopting).

I'll be there, with a dance mix cd in hand and Sasha is bringing a boombox so we can at least have some fun while we make our dissent known. I think it's going to be an enormous rally, some of my volunteers from work e-mailed me and I never thought they'd be going. Good. It should be big. It's insane that human beings would be denied rights.

If you want to have a good laugh—and I really encourage you not to take seriously the profoundly ignorant viewpoints expressed—read the comments on the LA Times article about Proposition 8 protests. We need more education in this country. We need conscious, intentional evolution. We need cultural competency trainings. We need to evolve past viewpoints like the ones expressed in those comments.

PandaToes Music Blog

2008-11-11T21:52:00.000-08:00

A reminder: There's a Dartmouth kid named Greg who has a pretty extensive, established and cogent music blog called PandaToes. You should check it out. From his site you can download most of the songs he mentions and I think he might even be from Austin. Enough reasons, go look at it.

Keith Olberman on Proposition 8

2008-11-11T21:05:00.000-08:00

A compelling expression of thought by MSNBC's Keith Olberman on California's recently passed Proposition 8:

Renewal Where Once Was Rust

2008-11-11T18:18:00.000-08:00

This is a late re-post and a worthy one; the green revitalization of the American manufacture industry needs to be discussed and furthered at all possible junctures. When I lived outside of Detroit last fall it was apparent the cars there were dying breeds, weighty American dinosaurs. An innovative, ecologically-efficient vision was needed. That vision could save the auto economy and thousands of jobs. I'm grateful the bigger wigs finally got the idea as well. Here's to sustainable invention permeating our society, moving us all forward with its lift.

Link to the November 1st, 2008 New York Times article "A Splash of Green for the Rust Belt."

Janelle Monae's "Many Moons"

2008-11-11T13:56:00.000-08:00

There are aspects of Janelle Monae's Metropolis referencing, android-creation with which I am in love. Too, there is a part of me that experiences the marketing budget she has more than the actual message she is providing. I appreciate it and feel it but wish it came less from the pockets of P. Diddy and more from her own straight-ally, nimble, talented hands.

Fun Fun Fun Fest

2008-11-10T22:53:00.000-08:00

Not an Obama post!

This weekend was the third annual Fun Fun Fun Fest, put on by Transmission Entertainment, at Waterloo Park in Austin.

Fun Fun Fun Fun Fun Fest had many moments of goodness and question marks and badness but here are EIGHT:

-Tim Fite 's hi-quality, med-fi, transmedia, beautiful little show!

-The dust! Kicked up in round grey clouds, swirling into nostrils.

-The misogyny of Kool Keith as Dr. Octagon ("girrl, let me touch you there, I want to feel you!")(and then boys in the crowd thinking it was okay to then touch the girls they were with). The truth that he's also very talented, just needs to examine his gender and sexuality views.

-The National being so polished and tight I felt like I was sleeping inside a cold piano. I loved it when I was able to be awake for it. The horns, the piano, all. The men in the band are precious and clearly utterly musically skillful though almost too tight (in all ways) for their own good.

-A surprise band: St. Vincent. I didn't know I liked her work. I walked in at the beginning of her set and was drawn in like a moth. She's from Dallas originally and was a musical gem and also clearly a little nutbar. She reminded me of my friend Jordana who's poppa dated Hillary Clinton back in the day—hot and gently off the handle. (The video that links to is just a catchy song, really her stage presence was the slightly off the handle part)(though maybe she's just a goddamn good performer).

-Writing poems on the ground while sitting on the "bad trip" sidewalk at the back of the Minus the Bear show.

-Biking to and from the festival with Jason, our bikes covered in lights. I had seven on. Feeling swift, safe and human. Biking around the capitol building at night, all heft and pink granite, rough and elegant.

-The kindly, OLD-souled five year-old on the halfpipe with a mohawk who, while waiting for his turn for the halfpipe (among fifteen adults), would use his skateboard as a guitar, thrashing it around to the sounds from the nearby punk stage.

-Okay, there's a ninth. Why were there no queer bands that I could find? If it was radical dykes rapping "girl let me touch you there, I want to feel you," at least it would explore the meaning of that phrasing more.

Cocoa Tea's "Barack Obama"

2008-11-10T22:37:00.000-08:00

I was reminded of this video over the weekend. Jamaican dancehall singer, Cocoa Tea, released this video in March in support of Barack Obama. I saw it for the first time last month and it's been caught running loops behind my eardrums ever since.

Barack Obama Slideshow

2008-11-08T08:31:00.000-08:00

I really appreciate these photos for the quality of realness they possess.

Where are the TV Lezzies?

2008-11-08T08:17:00.000-08:00

Grey's Anatomy is firing their one "outed" lesbian now, and the L Word begins its final season this year. Where am I going to get to watch people like me on TV?

Maya Angelou Writing a Poem about Obama

2008-11-07T21:01:00.000-08:00

There's an associated press article out today about Maya Angelou beginning to write a poem about Obama. On election night, I wrote one too. I couldn't help but write; I had to keep myself from vaporizing into thrill beams.

The whole night, once the networks were seriously projecting that Obama had won, my cells spun dizzy like thimbles on their edges, dimpled with light. I watched, and was part of, a takeover of the streets in downtown Austin (I'll post a piece I wrote about it soon). We danced, we chanted "Si se puede!" and "Yes we did!" We stopped traffic. I hugged random people. Random people hugged me. Instead of New Year's it was New Era. The world change was booming down upon us and we had created it.

It was the ultimate in feeling one's ability to change the world. If you re-watch Obama's last speech of the campaign, posted here under the heading: "Virginia, let's go change the world," you'll see again the eloquent emotion-journey Barack takes his audience on. He moves from the microcosm to the macro in speaking about one person's ability to change the world (it's very near the end of the speech).

It was this feeling that I could feel on Tuesday night as we chanted in the streets. We all felt part of this victory. We had ownership over the outcome. Most of us had gone beyond just voting: some had driven others to the polls, some had called voters to get them to the polls, some had worked for the campaign for months. But most importantly, because Barack's intention was to empower citizens to feel like change was possible, that empowerment had taken root and threaded through our beings affecting all that we do.

We had changed. The molecules in our bodies had shifted and brightened up with energy. We felt our own power through the mass collective power that had worked together from all parts of the country to get Obama elected. We were all churning towards a common goal of changing the United States and thus the world.

As Obama said in his acceptance speech on Tuesday night:
"This victory alone is not the change we seek. It is only the chance for us to make that change. And that cannot happen if we go back to the way things were.

It can't happen without you, without a new spirit of service, a new spirit of sacrifice.

So let us summon a new spirit of patriotism, of responsibility, where each of us resolves to pitch in and work harder and look after not only ourselves but each other."

I think that's the heart of this change, working together to elevate the collective. And so we begin...

Gagle, Big Bang Theory

2008-11-07T14:06:00.000-08:00

I could just eat him up!

2008-11-04T14:33:00.001-08:00

More tears

2008-11-04T14:25:00.000-08:00

From The New Republic
Dreams From My Father by Stephen Rodrick
"Why, as the son of a Navy pilot, I couldn't bring myself to choose a candidate until today."

Virginia, Let's go change the world.

2008-11-04T14:11:00.000-08:00

I actually didn't think anything else could get me crying, but then, of course, hearing the man himself, makes the tears of inspiration come again. The last speech of the campaign:

It's been a long time coming. But I know...

2008-11-04T13:17:00.000-08:00

Today has felt momentous. Beyond words. I work with a lump lodged in my chest. I talk with co-workers, friends, loved ones, strangers, about race in such unearthing ways as we've never spoken before. That is what this election is doing. It is opening a portal for us all to evolve, to end racism, to see privilege for what it is, to grow together.

I connect to all I love through phone and e-mail, call Democratic voters in Florida to tell them where their polling locations are, and read everything I can online. Tomorrow we will know. All these months of excitement and work, will coalesce into tonight's results.

This snippet from Dartmouth, my alma mater, punched me in the chest. (In a good way).

The View From Your Election: Dartmouth College

A reader writes:

Those who are wondering if the youth will turn out ought to see what I saw this morning.

One well-known government professor here told me that she has never seen so many students vote in the first hour of voting as she saw this morning. And I've never seen so many students up and alert at this hour. They're normally stumbling out of bed to make it to their 10 a.m. courses. Today, the campus has been buzzing for hours this morning. It appears that many of them decided to go to the polls as groups of twos, threes, fours and more when the polls opened at 7 a.m. The number of students I saw by 8 a.m. walking around with "I voted" stickers on is astonishing.

At breakfast, I sat next to a table of four black students, all of whom had voted. The three men were wearing ties. I asked them why. The answer: It was their first election, and they wanted to mark the occasion.

2008-11-04T13:12:00.001-08:00

He didn't vote for Obama today

2008-11-04T13:00:00.001-08:00

He didn't vote for Obama today.

Obama is delicious!

2008-11-04T12:55:00.001-08:00

First Time Voter

2008-11-04T12:48:00.000-08:00

The View From Your Election: DC

A reader writes:

At 3 p.m. on Election Day, the Foundry Methodist Church voting station in Dupont Circle was doing light but brisk business. As I signed my name to receive my ballot, one of the poll workers loudly asked another to ring the small bell on their table. "Everyone please listen up for a moment," he boomed while holding on to an old black woman standing perhaps 5'2" with a huge grin. "This is our special voter of the day. She's 95 years old and this is her first time voting."

As everyone in the room took her in and the thundering applause echoed through the old church basement, her glinting eyes quickly teared up and she somehow managed an even bigger smile.

The quote above is from Andrew Sullivan's blog, The Daily Dish. People are writing in with their voting experiences from the day.

Visualize President Obama

2008-11-04T11:17:00.000-08:00

From: http://my.barackobama.com/page/event/detail/gsxkmk
(I'm doing this now. This had Anna Sian and I teary-eyed).

Please join us on November 4th and invest ten minutes to one hour visualizing President Elect Barack Obama on inaugural day and being sworn in with Michelle by his side. See the flags flying, hear the crowd cheering! BE in the feeling of joy and celebration of such a triumphant moment.

During the primaries, this event had almost 1200 people signed up from more than 18 countries.

Now it's time to reconvene and use the power of prayer, mediation, focused intent and emotional visualization to bring this thing home.

Please sign up and tell us where you will be during your visualization time. Our last event had people from all over the US as well as from these countries: Netherlands, Canada, Ireland, Australia, Sweden, Germany, Jamaica, Kuwait, United Kingdom, Japan, South Africa, Nigeria, France, Finland, Costa Rica, St. Lucia/St. Kitts, Zambia, Sudan

Remember to let yourself see the inauguration in great detail. Imagine the weather, the motorcade, the world-wide attention, the crowds, the beautiful Obama family on the stage, etc. Allow yourself to FEEL the excitement you know will be reverberating through billions of people around the world. THIS IS OUR MOMENT! THIS IS OUR TIME!

I suggest we do this in two steps:

1. Before you go to bed on November 3rd spend from 10 minutes to 1 hour focused on the inauguration. Push aside any doubts about election day or whether the race will be called any particular time.

2. As soon as you awake on November 4th, before you even get out of bed, just allow the images of the inauguration to flow across the screen of your mind, almost like a dream. Maybe you even imagine the inaugural ball and Michelle and Barack dancing.

Throughout the day, you can return to this image. If you are doing GOTV like me, working the polls, serving as a lawyer to protect voting rights, or simply waiting in lines for AS LONG AS IT TAKES to vote. Be comforted by this image. FEEL the joy of it in your bones.

Remember to remain unattached to how things unfold on November 4th and focus instead on January 20th, 2009 - the first day of the Obama presidency.

New York Times Word Train Graphic

2008-11-04T10:20:00.001-08:00

The New York Times website has an amazing visual representation of the mood of the country right now. You can type in the word that best describes how you're feeling and it'll go into the data. The most frequent words are the biggest at the top and you can re-describe your feeling each hour. The words are even divided by McCain and Obama supporters so you can get a pulse on how each camp is feeling.

http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/11/04/us/politics/20081104_ELECTION_WORDTRAIN.html?partner=permalink&exprod=permalink

Russian boys singing to Sarah Palin

2008-11-02T19:49:00.000-08:00

I don't fully buy that these boys are in Russia, looks like part of Brooklyn in the background to me, but who cares? This video is catchy.

Carl Sagan the wizard.

2008-11-02T18:10:00.000-08:00

This video brings rushing in a great sweeping sense of perspective that many of us do not remember enough. I think about all the times I've huddled along through living days, nose down, eyes to the floor, moving quickly just to get things done, and now Here. Remember:

Gay Thoughts, Race Thoughts

2008-11-01T07:35:00.000-07:00

Something about living in Texas makes me get teary-eyed when I see beautiful, solid, media representation of gays (see example below). Austin is safe for gays as a whole and celebratory in some ways too, though there are always weird incidents that happen. Sometimes the incidents are far worse than just weird; there have been a few recent bus-beating incidents in Austin that definitely made me think about my safety as a lesbian.

I will say that Austin is a largely happy and progressive town, but there is a lot of general ignorance here about race, sexuality, and gender identity. The ignorance is remarkably high and un-checked compared to my experience in New York/ New England. I can only attribute it to the relative isolation of this enormous state holding down the center of our country far from the big cities of both coasts.

I was talking to my friend Amber about this last night: We all, from whatever racial background we are, need to be doing as much intentional anti-racism work, and pro-inclusion work around sexual and gender identities as we can. Let us allow each other the space to be honest and challenge each other for the parts of the collective, societal racism that we carry. It is all the unchecked bits and pieces of institutional racism we allow to survive in us that keep the collective racism alive. It is all the little unchecked pieces of racism, in even the most tolerant among us, that allow people to still be uncertain a bi-racial man could lead our country.

Now for what got me teary-eyed. I just watched the preview for a new film coming out November 21st, "I Can't Think Straight." The film is transnational writer Shamim Sarif's directorial debut and is a romantic comedy in which the lead protagonists are both women of color. More on it from the film's website:

[In] “I Can’t Think Straight”...the cultural backdrop forms an intelligent base for [the protagonists'] journey towards self-awareness and each other.

Tala, a London-based Jordanian of Palestinian origin, prepares for an elaborate wedding with her Jordanian fiancé, when she encounters a timid Leyla, a young British Indian woman who is dating her best friend Ali.

I Can't Think Straight opens in New York and Los Angeles Nov. 21. For more on the movie visit its official website.

Living City

2008-10-31T08:34:00.000-07:00

Tomorrow night (Saturday, Nov. 1st) at Club de Ville, the non-profit I work for, Project Transitions, is hosting the first annual Living City benefit show.

Project Transitions provides compassionate, supportive hospice and housing to people living with HIV/AIDS in Austin.

The Black and White Years are headlining the event, with Corto Maltese, Amy Cook and Zest of Yore playing earlier in the night.

Doors at 8! Zest of Yore at 9.

Raffle for $3 to win:
FIRST PRIZE

Dinner for 2 & t-shirt from Home Slice Pizza & Gift card for Daily Juice & $25 Gift Card for End of an Ear Records & $25 Gift Card to Room Service Vintage & $25 Gift Card to Whole Foods & Black and White Years merch

SECOND PRIZE

$25 Gift Card to Whole Foods & $25 Gift Card to Jo’s Coffee Shop, plus mug & Zest of Yore CD

Charles Alexander meets Barack Obama

2008-10-31T08:21:00.000-07:00

The Austinist's photo essay right now is a beautiful documentation of a meeting between Charles Alexander, an 86 year-old Boulder, Colorado resident and Barack Obama. Charles Alexander volunteers for the Obama campaign and entered a raffle at the local field office. Then, never having won anything in his life, we won the opportunity to meet Barack Obama.

Charles Alexander has had a long and remarkable life: He was born in East Texas and lived through the Great Depression, and military service in two wars. Charles has volunteered on political campaigns for forty years of his life. This year, Mr. Alexander's wife of 69 years passed away. Patrick Dentler, the writer for the Austinist, says this:

Charles entered the volunteer raffle contest to meet Barack Obama at the Boulder field office where he works--and won. He was able to shake hands, engage and even show off a picture of his wife with the man who might very well be the first black president of The United States...Charles, a man who cast his first ballot for FDR, just voted early for Barack Obama.

Together with you

2008-10-30T21:12:00.000-07:00

The Avatar Professional Course just finished in Orlando, Florida on October 17th. (I’m just now getting to post this). Twelve hundred people from thirty countries came together for one week to learn how to connect to others across many types of borders, how to help others, how to work more efficiently and powerfully, and ultimately to contribute to the creation of an enlightened planetary civilization.

The borders we connected across went beyond countries and languages, to personalities, beliefs and behaviors. We connected as beings, present with each other lovingly. And, everyone was there because they wanted to make the world a better place. Everyone wanted to help others feel better, feel happier, feel more powerful and in control of their own lives. The beauty of that earnest goal, and the fact that 1200 people from all over the world wanted to make the world better (rather than hurt each other, fight, complain, suffer or kill) had me smiling, laughing and crying often.

One of my favorite aspects of the course was the young people there. There were harajuku kids from Japan, techno kids from Israel, former farmers and surfers from New Zealand, girls in kimonos, young monks, German kids with modified mullets, Irish girls in patterned tights and dresses, and American kids in t-shirts. All of us wearing our different national costumes and personality costumes, putting on and playing with different identities. At our cores, it became apparent, all of us humans are limitless beings. We are limitless beings enjoying the playtime of taking off and trying on different viewpoints, life experiences, and goals. In this we have simultaneous individuality and unity.

Over 70,000 people from around the world have gone through the basic Avatar training, over 12,000 have taken the Avatar Masters teacher training course. Avatar’s largest goal is to catalyze the integration of belief systems, to create world peace. “Once we realize that the only thing that separates us is beliefs, and beliefs can be created and dis-created with ease, the right and wrong game will cease, and world peace will ensue.”

I feel forever changed by the experience of looking into the faces of so many people from all over the world, whom I didn’t even know, and connecting with them with ease, smiling and sharing love. There is a lot to be learned there. And, I would add, now that I’ve been back at work for two weeks, there’s a lot we do as humans to keep other people from really knowing us. We do a lot of protecting, avoiding realness and pretending. Let’s change this! Let's begin now.

Vote No on CA Prop 8 and FL Prop 2

2008-10-29T08:28:00.000-07:00

Florida is currently voting on Proposition 2, an amendment to the constitution that would define marriage as between a man and a woman and deny marriage rights to same-sex couples. California has similar legislation, Proposition 8. The cast of Ugly Betty stepped up to register their dissent about Proposition 8 in this video:

And here, in English as well:

Soil Lamp

2008-10-22T20:47:00.000-07:00

Dutch Design Week is this week in Eindhoven, Netherlands. One design in particular stood out to me as a genius creation and a gratifying reminder of the need for intelligent creativity in contemporary times. The Soil Lamp, designed by Marieke Staps, runs on mud.

From the designer:

Support this designer! The implications of this lamp are great. One can imagine a whole household full of lights running solely on energy created by microorganisms, and even larger appliances running on compost, running on decomposition, passively working for us and for the environment. The lamp is a lovely design as well. The aesthetics of this lamp on their own would be ample to encourage me to buy it, but knowing what it does, makes me want to seek it out across the ocean and get one. The lamp is not yet available for sale, and seems to be still in a prototype stage. The direction Marieke Staps is headed is a great one, and clearly ripe with opportunities. Mocoloco has more coverage of the work at Dutch Design Week.

I Relate

2008-10-11T11:58:00.000-07:00

I think I'm the fourth sister. And I love her. And I can't stop laughing.

Artists & Intuitive, Collective Simulacra

2008-10-11T07:05:00.000-07:00

In the past couple of months, I have discovered versions of things I have made, especially things I made at Cranbrook, popping up on the internet made by the hands of others. There's a sense that certain memes run through our culture in undercurrents and it is we, the artists, the simultaneous creators and dissectors of culture, who tap into them. In some cases, the end artistic products appear identical, as though we were exposed to each others work and replicated it without thought. However, in many of these same cases (my Migration project and the design image below for example), art works were made in the seclusion of a studio, as insertions into culture, not replications of things we artists had already seen. This further emphasizes my thought that we're all inadvertantly, intuitively creating collective simulacra.

Examples follow. Below the images, I've reposted the Wiki definition of simulacrum, especially in relation to philosophy because I find that to be the most textured definition.

First, we have my Migration project and Taschide's veneer wall stickers from left to right. Below that, we have another part of my Migration project, a little video Tim made.:

Next we have a piece I made last fall. I made a few pieces in this series and they were all investigations of patterning through wall drawings and drapings of chain on the wall. Here's one example from me and then Sarah Cihat's porcelain with Michael Miller's chainwork around it rocking the same design meme:

To be continued....

Simulacrum in philosophy

The simulacrum has long been of interest to philosophers. In his Sophist, Plato speaks of two kinds of image-making. The first is a faithful reproduction, attempted to copy precisely the original. The second is distorted intentionally in order to make the copy appear correct to viewers. He gives an example of Greek statuary, which was crafted larger on top than bottom so that viewers from the ground would see it correctly. If they could view it in scale, they would realize it was malformed. This example from visual arts serves as a metaphor for philosophical arts and the tendency of some philosophers to distort truth in such a way that it appeared accurate unless viewed from the proper angle.^[6] Nietzsche addresses the concept of simulacrum in The Twilight of the Idols, suggesting that most philosophers, by ignoring the reliable input of their senses and resorting to the constructs of language and reason, arrive at a distorted copy of reality.^[7] Modern French social theorist Jean Baudrillard argues that a simulacrum is not a copy of the real, but becomes truth in its own right: the hyperreal. Where Plato saw two steps of reproduction — faithful and intentionally distorted (simulacrum) — Baudrillard sees four: (1) basic reflection of reality, (2) perversion of reality; (3) pretence of reality (where there is no model); and (4) simulacrum, which “bears no relation to any reality whatever.” Baudrillard uses the concept of god as an example of simulacrum.^[8] In Baudrillard’s concept, like Nietzsche’s, simulacra are perceived as negative, but another modern philosopher who addressed the topic, Gilles Deleuze, takes a different view, seeing simulacra as the avenue by which accepted ideals or “privileged position” could be “challenged and overturned.”^[9] Deleuze defines simulacra as "those systems in which different relates to different by means of difference itself. What is essential is that we find in these systems no prior identity, no internal resemblance."^[10]

Vote for Fear

2008-10-10T16:24:00.000-07:00

Below, a repost of a great article Julia Whitty wrote for Mother Jones Magazine online. I find this relevant because the primary difference between McCain/Palin supporters and Obama /Biden supporters right now seems to be fear. It is fear of "the other," fear of gays, fear of Muslims, fear of the Middle East, and so on that fuels the McCain/Palin devotees. While Obama/Biden inspire and encourage hope. Read on.

Vote Your Fears

People who react strongly to bumps in the night, spiders, or the sight of a victims are more likely to support more defense spending, more government resources for fighting terrorism, and tighter immigration controls. This according to a new study from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln published in the current issue of Science.

The study was funded by the National Science Foundation and tested 46 people who identified themselves as having strong political opinions. The subjects were shown threatening visual images—pictures of a spider on a person's eyeball, a dazed person with a bloody face, an open wound with maggots in it. The subjects' skin was monitored for electrical conductivity—an indicator of emotion, arousal, and attention. As a separate physiological measure, the subjects were surprised by a sudden, jarring noise, while measurements were taken of their blink reflex.

Those with the strongest eye or skin reactions to unexpected noises or threatening pictures tended to endorse political positions emphasizing protecting society over preserving individual privacy. These people were found to be more willing to sacrifice their privacy in return for what they perceived as government protection. Conversely, the subjects who reacted less strongly were more likely to favor policies that protect privacy and encourage gun control. . . It's all in the biology. Even for disbelievers of biology.

Julia Whitty is Mother Jones' environmental correspondent, lecturer, and 2008 winner of the Kiriyama Prize and the John Burroughs Medal Award.

The Village Petstore and Charcoal Grill

2008-10-10T08:45:00.000-07:00

Banksy, the UK-based artist and street artist, has an installation in New York right now in a storefront in Greenwich Village.

It'll be open to the public daily through Oct. 31.
The NY Times describes it as following:

“Open for Pet Supplies/Rare Breeds/Mechanically retrieved meat” says a sign in front of the shop. Bales of hay dot the sidewalk, along with a kiddie dolphin ride, wrapped in a fishing net like the day’s catch. But it is the leopard in one of the storefront windows that stops passers-by first. “Is that — real?” a woman asked on Wednesday, peering at a large furry object perched on a tree branch, its tail swinging.

It’s not: it is an ingeniously arranged fake fur coat. The robot monkey is more lifelike: it sits, breathing, in a cage inside the store, wearing headphones, holding a remote and watching a television clip of some fellow monkeys in an amorous moment.

A rabbit wearing a pearl necklace files her nails in a window; the coop in the next one has chicken nuggets with legs, busily dipping themselves in sauce.

More videos of the installation available on the Village Petstore and Charcoal Grill website.

Vote for Hope

2008-10-09T15:12:00.000-07:00

This video was made by MC Yogi as a pro-Obama message. An excerpt of MC Yogi's bio is below the video.

MC YOGI (aka Nicholas Giacomini) grew up in Northern California, painting graffiti and listening to hip hop.

Inspired by artists like the Beastie Boys and Run DMC, he began writing and performing his own raps for friends at house parties. He spent most of his high school years at a group home for at-risk youth, and Hip hop culture provided both a soundtrack and a creative outlet during those turbulent teenage years. Then at age 18 he discovered yoga.

On a whim, he joined his father for a yoga and meditation intensive with a famous spiritual teacher from India. Deeply moved by this powerful experience, MC YOGI devoted himself to learning everything he could about the ancient discipline. He began studying the physical forms of yoga, as well as meditation, philosophy, and devotional chanting.

By combining his knowledge of yoga with his love for hip hop music, MC YOGI creates an exciting new sound that brings the wisdom of yoga to a whole new generation of modern mystics and urban yogis.

Palin Flow Chart

2008-10-09T11:45:00.000-07:00

I'm only posting this because I love flowcharts. Also, it does resonate with some truth.

Wow.

2008-10-04T07:51:00.001-07:00

from the Austinist's daily photo.

Ha ha ha ha ha! Brilliant. Good one friend.
Sidenote: We need better schools.

Sarah Silverman on The Great Schlep

2008-10-02T14:42:00.000-07:00

String Theory and Planetary Evolution

2008-10-02T14:32:00.000-07:00

Some very out of this world thoughts.
Professor Kaku's book sounds magnetic.

2008-10-02T11:37:00.000-07:00

100% crying.
Joyful.

REGISTER & VOTE

2008-10-02T11:11:00.000-07:00

for more info:

www.VOTEXAS.org
You can also pick up an application at the post office,
or go to VOTEFORCHANGE.com

From BarackObama.com:

In less than a week, voter registration will have ended in over two dozen states. The deadline to register in Mississippi is this Friday. The deadline to register to vote in Nevada, Utah, Washington, Rhode Island and South Carolina is Sunday.

Monday, October 6th is the deadline to register in 17 additional states. (Including Texas).

No matter where you live, if you have three minutes to spare, you can check your registration status, register to vote, request an absentee ballot, and find your early voting site or polling location at VoteForChange.com.

In 2004, George Bush won Nevada by less than 2.5% of voters, New Mexico by less than 1% of voters, and Colorado by less than 100,000 votes. In Ohio, Bush won by just over 100,000 votes -- less than 10 votes per precinct.

This time, we can't leave anything to chance.

This is your choice: three minutes spent registering to vote -- or four years spent wishing that you had.

A Brief Visual History of Recent Political Art

2008-10-01T12:48:00.000-07:00

Abraham Obama, by Ron English

I've seen a handful of blogs lately that are dedicated solely to documenting all the art being made about, and for, Barack Obama. I see it as a bright sign that the cultural creators of our society finally feel positively inspired enough by a political candidate to devote their minds, hands and hours to make art about it. I, like many other young artists, have made my fair share of anti-Bush art; it's grand to see pro-Obama art.

Let's use Shepard Fairey, of OBEY fame, as an example. Fairey is donating all proceeds from sales of his Obama art to the campaign ($400,000 last I heard). And from his same hand, we have this:

To now these:

Both pieces are successful and compelling. The new work though, has something else, optimism. Not images of bombs, HOPE. Not red and black and talk of global supremacy, bright blues and kind uplifted eyes. Not critique and criticism, inspiration. Obama inspires positivity. Obama's message of unity transcends. And we, the artists, are clearly lifted. The stigma on optimism incinerates.

As a sidenote, if you aren't familiar with him, Shepard Fairey is a severely adept street artist. He's most known for his work as OBEY. The pieces he put up for the last hurrah of the famed street art/graffiti hub 11 Spring St. in the fall of 2007 were visually rich blends of pattern and portrait. Most of the art from 11 Spring was incredible. Here's The Gothamist's great story on it. Below, one of Fairey's pieces from 11 Spring:

After years of seeing anti-Bush visual art and hearing anti-Bush slam and performance poetry, I feel thoroughly refreshed to see creatives using their skill to inspire. Fairey's was the first big design for Obama. Then many artists followed suit. For example, the Abraham Obama at the top of this post, one of many designs commissioned by Upper Playground (see one by Burlesque Design of North America below). Countless more Obama art is displayed on The Obama Art Report. In this way, Fairey has been an art leader, just as Obama has incited a sea change in political dialogue and, I would argue, a transcendance in our way of thinking.

Obama Poster by Burlesque Design of North America, available at Upper Playground's online store.

I'm all for hope. I'm all for energetically creating what we want, rather than constantly resisting what we don't.

The anti-Bush art served its purpose. It allowed us to speak our frustrations, to release our profound sense of collective disenfranchisement. The Bush era was a dark period in our nation's history. During it, our collective evolution was stunted in many ways. Our ability to speak up through non-normative communication channels was not. We found the alternative avenues in which to speak, from blogs to street protests to art shows. Now as we get to leave behind that dark Bush era and step forward into the glow, we carry with us our new ability to speak.

We carry with us our art, our words, our inspiration. We are all now, empowered agents of change.

Racism and the Election

2008-09-30T10:56:00.000-07:00

My friend Anna sent this to me and I find it wholly brilliant.

From Letters to the Editor, Fort Worth Star-Telegram 9.17.08

How Racism Works

What if John McCain were a former president of the Harvard Law Review?
What if Barack Obama finished fifth from the bottom of his graduating class?

What if McCain were still married to the first woman he said 'I do' to?
What if Obama were the candidate who left his first wife after she no longer measured up to his standards?

What if Michelle Obama were a wife who not only became addicted to pain killers, but acquired them illegally through her charitable organization?
What if Cindy McCain graduated from Harvard? What if Obama were a member of the 'Keating 5'? What if McCain was a charismatic, eloquent speaker?

If these questions reflected reality, do you really believe the election numbers would be as close as they are?

This is what racism does. It covers up, rationalizes and minimizes positive qualities in one candidate and emphasizes negative qualities in another when there is a color difference.

-Kelvin LaFond, Fort Worth

Adaptable Shelves, Design by Errazuriz

2008-09-29T15:08:00.001-07:00

Most of this blog has been about politics, as is the predominant drama of the day, but here's a brief break.

"Repisa N5," foldable shelves designed by witty Chilean/British artist & designer, Sebastian Errazuriz. The shelves fold up and down to save space. I find them beautiful and elegantly thought out. Errazuriz designed this work for Cristina Grajales Inc.

I highly recommend looking at Errazuriz's personal website, the rest of his oeuvre is incredible. Most especially, I find the whole "Out" series, under the Unclassifiable Limited Editions, to be brilliant. I would include images here but his site is all Flash.

Sarah Palin the Hunter

2008-09-29T14:22:00.000-07:00

Right now, I have more compassion for the animals Palin has hunted and killed, than sincere compassion for her. I'd like to work on this. I would like to be able to ally with Sarah Palin as a human being, while also acknowledging the militant myopia of her views and actions. I want to be able to appreciate Palin as a being, so that I can allow her to change. She too can be illuminated. She too could wise up and recognize her politics exclude and harm many. My compassion for her adds more compassion to the equation. Palin, take this love we send your way and learn to extend it back at us.

In the meantime, as I work to evolve, I watch this video. I watch it with gratitude that there are people who I have never even met, who reside in all aspects of our society, who add art and cogent, emotive dialogue to the fray.

Harbinger House at West Coast Green

2008-09-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

This video shows and explains a really interesting eco-house, Harbinger House, that is made out of re-used shipping containers. It was on display at West Coast Green in San Jose, CA, this weekend. Of particular interest to me is the house's ability to report back remotely to its owner on its electricity, gas and water use. Efficiency! Technology!