The art of the face

Found this on boing boing today and was just blown away by it. Great idea and amazing work.

Eating Organic on a Food Stamp Budget

I just started reading local writer, Rebecca Blood's excellent blog,Eating Organic on a Food Stamp Budget , on eating in a locovore, organic manner in the most economic manner. I find this very interesting in part because that's the diet that I pretty much grew up with. I've been quite resistant to the idea that eating well and ethically had to be expensive and part of an "elite" lifestyle. The Alemany Farmer's Market has always been part of my and always been reasonably priced and had this "people's market" feel. But with all the wonderful eating options we have in this town, I like most every one I know, eats out more then they need to. I'm trying to do better though.

I'm also just really impressed by Blood's ingenuity
for taking on such a project with a journalist's mindset and a personal touch. Impressive stuff.

Maker Faire

There's been tons of wrap up on Maker Faire, which was awesome. This time lapse video is one of the best things I've seen so far.

Pillow Fight!

pillow fight
Originally uploaded by Pete Knife.

Google Korea to censor search results

this article on Google Korea's plan to censor search results really sort of disturbs me; partly because it's just another example of the ROK government trying to put up the appearance of solving a problem, but actually not really doing anything at all. Requiring "age verification" and national registration numbers to view content isn't going to really stop any kid.

The other thing is that it's another example of Google giving up some of the "Do no wrong" principles for the greed of getting in good in an Asian country. Rather then bending to the wishes of a paternalistic government, it seems the better idea would be to offer a far superior product that meets the needs of Koreans just as well far as it does for Americans, if not better.

Formula One's Lewis Hamilton

I haven't been watching Formula 1 so far this season, but I have been following the reports of the rise of Lewis Hamilton, the newest F1 superstar. Four races into the season, and though he has yet to win a race, he's already leading in points, the youngest to ever do so. As the first black driver to actually compete in F1, it's interesting how little is being made of the fact. Even this discussion is rather tame. Historically F1 has been a gentleman's game, but since the big money came in years ago, it's all about performance and winning races. Hamilton seems poised to win one and race now, and I wish him luck. It is good to see the world's second most popular sport just a bit more open and reflective of the world.

Openings

It was Open Studios in the Mission this past weekend, and ended touring through twice, once on Friday evening and again late Sunday afternoon, and still didn't manage to get to all the spaces I wanted to. It was fascinating to getter a better picture of what other neighborhood folk are doing art-wise and also really inspiring. Lately I've been feeling sort of guilty for not being able to say "Yes" when people ask me if I'm an artist. Artistic expression totally fascinates me and love having it in my life, and I feel like I've got a good eye. It's just a matter of making more time to fool around with materials and letting myself play. But maybe having studio space where everything could be out and ready to go whenever would help get me to produce more. Either way, I definitely want to make it a priority beyond the stuff I'm doing for Burning Man this year.

But beyond my own artistic yearnings, I met some awesome people and saw some stand out stuff. Some of favorites:

• Paz de la Calzada
  
• Gina Power
  
• Kathryn Jaller
  
• Summer Lee
  
• Aaron Kllc
  
• Lisa Chou
  
• Melisa Philips
  
• Jeff Paul Riley
  

Spielberg, Jackson team for Tintin

Variety.com - Spielberg, Jackson team for Tintin

Wow! This is huge. It's amazing to see names like this attached to developing new film versions of Tintin, but shows the love and devotion that people all of the world have to this character. I know he introduced me to a love of geography, travel and sequential art. I couldn't get enough of his adventures in the late 70s.

Though I have to say, the idea of a "photo-realistic" Tintin is a bit frightening, but if anyone can do it in a tasteful manner, faithful to the Hegre originals, I trust Peter Jackson.

LOL BERZ

Made my first LOLCATSstyle pic today. Fun stuff

Brooke Shields Alphabet Quiz

Solve the Brooke Shields mystery

Reminds me of the apocryphal story on the origin on the word "Quiz", though Brooke Shield Alphabet doesn't quite roll off the tounge.

Love the fickr pool

via: Warrren Ellis

Chabon

Last night, I went to see Vendela Vida interview Michael Chabon about his latest novel, The Yiddish Policemen's Union, for City Arts & Lectures. I was going to wait for the paperback, but like Chabon said, there's nothing more fun the alternate history and I couldn't wait to start reading his version of the world where America accepted millions of Jewish refuges and allowed them to settle in th Alaskan Panhandle, thereby mitigating the Holocaust to some degree.

One the thing that he talked about that struck me was an awareness that his own writing voice tended to run long and snuck in clauses at the drop of a hat. I can certainly identify with that tendency as well. So trying to writing detective fiction in the manner of Chandler was really tough for him. I've only dug in to the first few chapters, but it is a bit of a strange bird, Chabon's beautiful sentences in a much more clipped style. I think I'm going to enjoy it.

Even though Chabon made a strong argument that typical "mainstream" literature that comes out of the tradition psychological realism of Checkov is a type of Genre fiction itself, I think one of the best things he's doing in legitimizing Genre such as super-hero stoies, sword fantasy and now detective fiction. I can totally see how he's part just writing the things that he'd like to read but the modern sensibilities and awareness he brings to his subject is a grand a glorious thing.

Internet More Dangerous than School Violence, Sexually Transmitted Diseases for Children

Internet More Dangerous than School Violence, Sexually Transmitted Diseases for Children: survey

I found this little bit of paranoia interesting. Reminded me of the excellent book "The Culture of Fear: Why Americans Are Afraid of the Wrong Things" that I read a few years back.

Fragged

I saw a preview of the play First Person Shooter last Friday. It goes into the heavy topics of school shootings, racism, and personal guilt. Intense stuff and the director used a clever trick had the actors slam the set pieces around to heighten that intensity. And of course, with the VT shooings it was very topical stuff. The script covered a lot of ground and in a fairly complex way, with some fairly funny dialog as well. Some nice chunky roles for the many of the actors to sink their teeth into. Chad Deverman and Craig Marke were particular stand-outs.

As in any time limited dramatization of complex issues, aspects get left unexamined and I couldn't help but think about some of the issues that would have liked. Even though they provided plenty of examples, I wish the play had at least noted all the homo-erotic/homophobic trash-talking and posturing in the gaming world. Guys will say some stuff that they'd never think of repeating outside of the context of game-play. It's all sort of male-bonding talk, but there probably deeper connotations as well. What I find interesting that a lot of gamers are people that have adopted a role that at least superficially rejected typical "jock" behavior.

Then there's unexplored that school shooting and violence on that level is really a male issue, and the few exceptions only help prove the rule. But rather then just sort of writing boys and men as inherently violent, my take on it is that our society does a great disservice to it's boys and gives them very few tools to deal with and express their emotions. Instead a male culture of violent outbursts is perpetuated and accepted in this country.

Then of course there's the issue of ready access to firearms in this country...