Birds in Spring - 1933

Hey! A 'toon on one of my favorite topics! The beginning chronicles how warmer weather encourages feathered friends to get all sorts of sexy. The bulk of the story is devoted to a little punk fledgling who thinks he can make it on his own. Hey kid - you're no Lil' Brudder!



The very end of the clip is interesting though - Disney totes condones corporal punishment for foolhardy youths! And who knew you could pull down a bird's feathers like they were pants!

Back to Basics

After a winter of drinking very flavorful, heavy sorts of beer, I feel like the time is ripe to drink something light and simple. Spring calls for a beer that's got that good old fashioned "beery" beer flavor.

In anticipation of our incoming season, I've been enjoying "Anchor Liberty Ale".

Very good!

Knowing is half the battle...

I recently bought this shirt during Threadless' epic March Madness $10 t-shirt sale:

Without realizing/knowing that it was an homage to this:



Good thing I found out before somebody started talking to me about The White Stripes! I don't want to seem like a poser. I just bought it because I like elephants.... :-/

Golden Eagles

I heard this idea on NPR, and I think it bears repeating! In Sendai, one of the areas most heavily damaged by the Earthquake/Tsunami Horror, they have a baseball team called "The Golden Eagles".They play in Japan's Pacific League.



In the disaster, their stadium was damaged, and their GM, American Marty Kuehnert has gone missing. 

Here are the players observing a moment of silence before a recent exhibition game, honoring the dead and missing. I was somewhat suprised to learn that Japan's teams are as multi-cultural as our own. The Eagles have had players from America, China, Canada and the Dominican Republic.

Even though it's a terrible, hard situation, I think we should reach out and use this as an opportunity for something positive. As the "Sports Curmudgeon" suggested- we should invite them to come play some charity games with teams here in the states.  I think it's a great way to recognize the shared pastimes, and the similarities between our baseball cultures. It's also a fantastic opportunity to raise money to rebuild their hometown.

Breakfast Revelations

SO if you're anything like me, sitting down in the morning and having a nice hot breakfast is not an option. I prefer sleeping till the very last possible second and then running out the door in a panic, thank you very much!

I found two awesome quick breakfasts though lately that are frankly off the chain.

1. Lender's Frozen Bagels.

Pop these directly into your toaster from your freezer. They come out tasting like they are from a bakery. Really! These frozen ones are much much better than ones from the bread aisle (I'm looking at you, Thomas'), because they have a nice crisp crust and are much chewier. More than just a thick, round piece of regular bread. I Toast 'em up while I brush my teeth and them eat them in the car.

2. Emerald Breakfast on the Go Trail Mix

These are even quicker, and actually relatively healthy too. Granola, nuts, berries and yogurt raisins. Yum Yum! I'm semi-addicted.

Does anybody really take the time to eat/make breakfast anymore? On the weekends perhaps!

Team Zissou!

At the request of my dear friend, I recently knit a Toque inspired by Wes Anderson's 2004 film "The Life Aquatic".

Now all she needs is a speedo, diving equipment, a ship, and a shark to hold a grudge against.



Pattern is here

Caturday XXX

I can Haz Luv?

This is Bette Davis, a kitty from Devon England that wears her heart on her sleeve. She's currently looking for a home, which is sad. I hope somebody who wants a feline Valentine finds her soon!

How I spent my St. Patricks Day

I drank these beers:

Paul and I closed our eyes and compared them. Once again, in a blind taste test, Wachusett kicks Hapoon's butt.

We played a traditional Irish game, Fichneal, which Paul kicked my butt in twice incredibly quickly. I decided that I hated the game.

We ate corned beef and cabbage from a crock pot!

And we watched an amazing movie: The Secret of Kells (2009). It's a very cool animated film, with  beautiful stylized art.



It's the story of a boy named Brendan who lives in a medieval Irish fortress, as Vikings plague and pillage the land. He befriends a skilled Illuminator and develops a passion to protect a sacred book and learn the skills of his craft. This movie is really cool because it's partially about how old books are awesome! It's also got a really good overlay of mythology and history. It was certainly the most satisfying movie I've watched in awhile.

Though I kept getting reminded of home movies whenever somebody called out to Brendan. I associate that name mostly with that other little red haired kid, thank you very much!

Happy St. Pattys

Hope you enjoy enough pints to sing like these guys:

Rough Rider

111 Years ago, Teddy Roosevelt climbed on the back of a majestic moose and rode it through the wilderness. A year later in 1901, he was elected president. Are you shocked? Me neither. Nobody is. This is excruciatingly manly my friends.

This Roosevelt was also the first president to be seen riding in an automobile in public. He's like the master of novel transportation.

But who WAS that masked fellow?

I have a new favorite bird I think: The Cedar Waxwing!

via:sausalcreek.org

 

There is a great flock of about 40 of them who hang out by my office window, gluttonously eating the remaining berries they can find on the winter bushes and flying about in unison.

I like them very much, mostly because they look like superheroes with their masks on!

via: http://comstockmtn.com

 

But also because they are soooooo romantic:

"During courtship the male and female will sit together and pass small objects back and forth, such as flower petals or an insect. Mating pairs will sometimes rub their beaks together affectionately."

 image via http://www.symbolicmessengers.com/Mimids.html

D'awww!

Visual Thinking - 1959

This is a very early sketch from the Muppets, from back when Jim Henson called his show "Sam and Friends."

Alphaquest

The magical theme song to this Sesame Street feature sometimes pops into my head randomly. This segment featuring the awesome letter "d" premiered in 1990.



I also agree that Dinosaur = Delightful. Wink!

Very Grownup Indeed

First, the good news: Not only can I get a manicure, but I can get business cards too!

That's right! Even though I didn't get to keep my position working in Brown Bag, The Food Bank hired me for another exciting position. I am officially the Agency Capacity Coordinator for Franklin and Hampshire county! (That is, starting Monday :)) That means I'm a liaison between The Food Bank and all the various community organizations that make up the emergency food system. It's a pretty exciting and interesting opportunity and I'm very pleased to accept it.

We went to the Moan and Dove last night to celebrate, and accidentally stumbled into the opening of an art show there. Giddy on professional advancement and Hennepin, we decided to purchase one of the stunning paintings by local artist (and self confessed "anti-archtophilist" - it's on his business cards!) Brent Klockars. It was the first time that I think I've bought real art, and it seemed like kind of a milestone.

Here are some examples of Klockars' style. The paintings are really more beautiful though when you see them in person. They'll be on the wall until the end of the month there at the Dove. You can also check out his etsy store.

New job, new art. March is actually turning out to be a good month for once, even considering the weather.

Toledo Suprise

Last weekend, Paul and I saw "The Drowsy Chaperone" at Theater at the Mount. My little brother was in it and it was awesome. The show's premise is that a lonely man sits in his lonely apt., getting all his pleasure from records of his antiquated musicals. He puts on a record of the Drowsy Chaperone from the 1920's, and the show comes to life in his living room.

Since we saw it, I cannot shake the infectious tune of the number "Toledo Suprise". The actors in this video aren't actually nearly as good as those we saw in Gardner at TAM, but they give you a good idea of the musical/thatrical content.



It's a really good play! I'd reccommend it to anybody who gets a chance to see it.

FAT Tuesday

Happy Mardi Gras!

Pretend that you're enjoying jambalaya on the bayou and watch this footage from a 1941 New Orleans parade!

Dazzling

If I could afford designer duds, I would totally pounce on these awesome interstellar garments from Christopher Kane. I really love the neat galaxy inspired fabrics.

$925

Not to get too punny though, but the prices for these fairly simple pieces are frankly astronomical. Who spends this much on a single article of clothing? Finding out how much these outfits cost made me feel that fashionistas must be wasteful dummies with no concept of how much things really cost.

$1,265

$940

$325

$1470

I would much rather purchase 2 round trip tickets to Brussells than own this dress. So maybe that's just what I'll do!

Hobbit Dance Party

This is my jam of the week: an awesome remix of audio clips from the Lord of the Rings movies.

It is surprisingly good. I listened to it on repeat a few times. It's awfully refreshing to hear a dance party song that's not drowning in autotune for a change.

Love-Crafts

I made this kinda sorta cute and cuddly stuffed C'thulu for Paul. It was supposed to be a Valentines gift but it took me longer than I thought it would!

As I've mentioned before, there weren't too many good knit C'thulu patterns on the internet. So I decided to sort of make it up as I went, loosely basing parts on bits from other patterns and experimenting. Even though I'm not 100% thrilled with the shape of it, I'm still pleased with it as the first pattern I devised largely by myself.

He's a pocket sized Arkham Horror!

Skulls and Bunnies

Last night Paul and I finally watched the documentary "Exit Through the Gift Shop (2010)"; a street art documentary about a guy making a street art documentary. I highly recommend it, it will provoke your thoughts about "vandalism", art, capitalism and desperate trendiness. It gave me a new appreciation for the artistic skills good graffiti actually requires. It also taught me (finally) what the deal is with those Andre the Giant "Obey" stickers you see everywhere.
 
The movie also got me thinking about some of my favorite contemporary artists. You know who's awesome? Jeremy Fish. He's a skateboard designer who combines morbid shit with pure cuteness. While a lot of his work is commissioned for products-

-He's done his fair share of street art too.

He's a good example of the line between consumerism and integrity that pop artists face in these modern times.