New Media vs Old Media

Wow, CNN playing the "we weren't aware" card while firing a popular blogger. Who do they really believe is going to buy this? As the media industry implodes around us I think stories such as this one are going to become more prevalent. I have friends now who are waiting to see if they are going to be among the 150 to be laid off by the L.A. Times.


Chez Pazienza: Say What You Will (Requiem for a TV News Career) - Media on The Huffington Post

Paste Magazine :: News :: Conchords' Clement, Sam Rockwell to star in Broncos

Yay! What could be better than a collaboration of Conchords and the same duo who gave us Napoleon Dynamite? If you've seen Eagle vs. Shark you know Clement will fit right in.


Paste Magazine :: News :: Conchords' Clement, Sam Rockwell to star in Broncos

Forget Oprah!

San Francisco Bay View - Toni Morrison, who labeled Bill Clinton ‘1st Black president,’ backs Barack Obama

Wow, Toni Morrison has endorsed a candidate in this presidential election. Morrison's writings are among the greatest things this country has ever contributed to the world. Toni Morrison is brilliance it's self. For a while now, I've been meaning to post what this democratic primary means to me.

My Mom would often tell me when I was little, " you choose your battles by the number of enemies you face. You"re a woman first and a Latina second always remember that." And I've tried to live my life that way. I don't want more from society for woman. I want equal footing. From the beginning I loved Obama's message of change. As Super Tuesday looms, I started to waiver it'd be awesome to have a woman president. Clinton's moment of emotion on the campaign trail put me off (I refuse to call that crying). It was an obvious stunt, and it worked.

So what do you vote? Do you vote just to be proud? Out of a sense of recognition of your own identity. Or do you vote your conscious under the belief that the world has changed and the way we align ourselves must change as well?

Once Again

Once Again, a Legit Nominee - Carpetbagger - Movies - Oscars - Awards - David Carr - New York Times Blog

Glad this got cleared up. Once deserves more than just the best song nomination. It was looked over in all the other categories the least Oscar could do would be to include it as a part of the best song nominations. Let's hope it wins! But like every year with Oscar most likely it won't because it deserves it the most.

Are You Irish?

Will Ferrell Roasts Ireland As He Wins James Joyce Award - Entertainment on The Huffington Post

Highly entertaining but why Will Ferrell?

Always Watching

Last Sunday night I almost had a television break down. There was absolutely nothing on t.v. And though various columns and news stories had warned me this would be coming the horrible reality of it was almost too much to take. I was reduced to going through a bag of shreadables to see if there was anything in it useful for my taxes this year. Who does that? Clearly a sign for help. Thank God for good friends. The silver lining to this horror story is this: I've discovered the Sopranos and the Canadian television series Slings and Arrows.

No doubt my mention of the Sopranos has left you thinking I'm not that into t.v. as I say I am. And to that I say, yes, yes I live in the United States, and yes, I heard all the buzz. But by the time I ever considered the Sopranos it felt way too late. Only now after all the hype and the parodying of its ending can I quietly catch up. And good for me! Because while others are suffering with nothing to watch I'm watching the series that revolutionized t.v. and brought serials to cable television, which most likely saved the medium by reinventing it.

"To be, or not to be: that is the question: Whether 'tis nobler in the mind to suffer The slings and arrows of outrageous fortune, Or to take arms against a sea of troubles, And by opposing end them?"Hamlet (Act 3, Scene 1). There is where Slings and Arrows takes its title from. A great show which begs the question what is art? What is it useful for? Should it be useful?And when old forms of accepted art become overused and overwrought are they still viable forms of art? This show is so funny, touching, black, and honest that the word entertainment isn't enough to describe it. It layers and layers and makes fun of everything and nothing. Mostly it reminds us of our own definition of art and whether or not we should suffer the slings and arrows to achieve what we want to in search of our own creations.

Both shows take their characters and stick them into extraordinary circumstances. Allow their characters to get away with things most of us only dream of and that is apart of their draw and entertainment factors. What keeps viewers coming back for more is the honest portrayals of the complexity of human relationships.

?Que Paso Google?

For some razon the Defamer was using google translator to translate a Heath Ledger article into Spanish and came across an unusual programming error. I tried it myself and thought hum maybe they just put in Tom Cruise's name for any name used. So I tried typing in Ryan Gosling instead, and wouldn't you know it Ryan Gosling translated to Ryan Gosling.

Maybe Google should reconsider whoever it is using for English-Spanish translation.

Vote 4 Flick

The first time I thought about discussing the Tracy Flick/Clinton video I came to the conclusion it was best to leave it alone. I hadn't seen the video but thought for sure a guy is responsible for this. A woman with any sort of political ambition is going to be compared to Tracy Flick's character in Election because its an easy way to make her look hysterical. Finally, this morning I gave into the temptation and looked at the video. And you know what, just like at the end of the movie. I actually want Tracy Flick to win because, as long as we are on the same side, I think Flick is the candidate who would be willing to do whatever it takes to get things done. And right now, that's what this country needs a candidate who is going to be able to fix a lot of what has been undone.

And if we are going to use Election to heighten our candidate's profiles in this presidential election couldn't Bush's presidency be viewed as what would happen if Paul Metzler defeated Tracy Flick? I mean wouldn't the nation then be just like crying for a president like Tracy Flick? And really isn't that the position we find ourselves in now?

Q: Are We Not Men?

This week I went with some friends to Mac Blast! The launch party for the mac version of Windows 08. A friend of mine who is a huge Devo fan found out they were playing and we all decided to try for one of the limited number of tickets which were offered to the public through a Devo fan site. Above should be video of their opening number. Sorry for the poor sound quality. I got my first smart phone for Christmas and am still trying to figure the thing out. I'm hoping my slow internet speed is the reason the video isn't looking too great for me.

Even though we had tickets we stood in line outside the venue for two hours so we could be among the first to get in. My friend had heard that there would be band freebies for the first two hundred. We watched as the line was separated into two by security guards and entertained ourselves by trying to guess who would turn to go into the strip club next door as they passed. This turned out to be more challenging than we thought it would be and we only got one person right. Then about an hour before the doors were set to open the line was divided again and a "friends of the band" line was created. We were really feeling rejected by not being chosen to be apart of that line. But we made it in! And were rewarded with a MacBlast/Devo t-shirt, Devo playing cards, and power point M&Ms (tasty). I've include the video the band played before their final song. Devo encouraged us to go home and become the epicenter for something "new." We should all go home and disconnect our computers from the internet and throw them out the window.



Awesome! Even though my first reaction when Devo took the stage was, "they're old!" They proved they still got it. I don't think I really appreciated Devo's music until I saw them that night. It was the first time I've seen them live and I'm so glad I got the chance to do it. I really wish I would have caught their performance of Uncontrollable Urge on video. It was the highlight of the night for me. Watching them while Mark Mothersbaugh ripped their contamination suits off and stripped them to their skaterish shorts and shirt uniforms. Below is the return of Booji Boy who apparently had been cryogenicaly frozen for this evening's performance of Beautiful World. Its even more surreal to see him appear as a white energy blob on the video because the stage light behind him drowns out his image.

Paper Or Plastic?

I take no pride in admitting that I too have fallen into the nasty habit of reading all of the gossip blog information I can find on the Britney Spears' melt down. Its horrible, its like admitting to looking at the bodies when you finally pass the traffic accident even though the car looks like a crushed soda can and you know it ain't gonna be good. I can't help it. And I've been trying to think about why I can't help it. I know the interest helps sells gossip rags and tabloids, which in turn buy these paparazzi shots and the whole thing perpetuates so I should stop but I don't. Is it part of our culture? Its certainly not novel to point out Americans love to create heroes and myths, and equally love to tear them down. But that's not it, it maybe part of the reason why we are so fascinated by the meltdown, but its not why we keep tuning in. Maybe its too see how far we're going to let it go before someone actually does intervene.

Clearly, nobody thinks this erratic behavior can be attributed to a bratty celebrity gone wild. The woman is obviously suffering from some sort of mental illness and needs help to rein it in if she can, but nobody seems to be stepping up. I was checking out of a store today and a woman behind me was commenting on all of the tabloid headlines with Britney on the cover. She said, "Is no one going to help her?" And when I turned around, to see who had said it, I noticed she was accompanied by a caregiver who was unloading her cart and helping her get her money together for her purchase. For some reason this really struck me. I have had several friends who have had to deal with loved ones who suffered from depression. You can't control the person's actions. From the outside it's easy to say if that were my loved one I'd... and I wouldn't let them blah blah blah. But the truth is, when the person is an adult there isn't really much recourse for their loved ones to help them unless the person cooperates or the family has them declared unfit to take care of themselves. What are the chances that someone who isn't in their right mind is going to cooperate with loved ones trying to take away their freedom?

Many who have never been in this situation also seem to equate crazy with dumb. Just because a person is all of a sudden acting manic or unstable doesn't mean they've lost their intelligence. Sometimes it's harder to help because they can control their illness enough so that many around them can't see the pain they're in. Take for example the noted academic who recently gave a rousing New Year's speech to the preparatory school he was president of and hours later threw himself off a building. Is the fascination with depression because the numbers of those who suffer from it is on the rise? I know a number of people, normal friends, who have taken anti-depressants to get through situational depression. And what clinically is situational depression isn't it just life do you really need a pill to get through it? More and more I think our fascination with Britney and others is likely because we see that depression and mental illness can affect anyone and in some sick way maybe people take solace in that.

Richard Corey

Whenever Richard Cory went down town,
We people on the pavement looked at him:
He was a gentleman from sole to crown,
Clean favored, and imperially slim.

And he was always quietly arrayed,
And he was always human when he talked;
But still he fluttered pulses when he said,
"Good-morning," and he glittered when he walked.

And he was rich-- yes, richer than a king,
And admirably schooled in every grace:
In fine, we thought he was everything
To make us wish that we were in his place.

So on we worked, and waited for the light,
And went without meat, and cursed the bread;
And Richard Cory one calm summer night,
Went home and put a bullet through his head.

Edwin Arlington Robinson (1869)

Hybernation and the Rain

Between my housebound illness and the rain in the Bay Area I should have my ark ready no later than February. Whatever super cold/cough/flu thing that's been going around got me on New Year's Day. Happy New Year! Last night was my first night out on the town in a week. I went to see No Country For Old Men the latest Cohen brothers flick. It was worth all the attention its been getting even though I didn't understand the ending at all.

Miramax has the screenplay available online so I could at least read the last scene again (it didn't help). If you've seen it and have a theory let me know what you think. If not its a good movie you should see it and then explain the ending to me.

On the 18th Day of Christmas...

Several of my friends are flying tomorrow to several different parts of the country to be with their families for Christmas. Annually we all make the trip home for the winter holiday even if the expense serves as a valid reason to keep us away the rest of the year. Tomorrow they'll wake up, and brave the traffic and irritation at the airport to board a flight they're not really sure they want to be boarding. By the time they've spent two hours in line waiting to move through metal detectors while novice flyers slow the pace attempting to get their illegal token liquid presents or other contraband on to the plane, my friends will start to think of how irritated they are to have to make such inconveniences to accommodate their families. They'll start to pick apart and remember all the faults they initially found in their hometowns. And all at once, the reminders of why they left will come flooding into their minds building dissatisfaction into monumental levels that will never abide until they are back home. Their home. Essentially, all the good will which has been building and stored up through out the year will be spent in an hour before they've even left the ground.

My best friend once told me she admired me for moving to another part of the state and making a life for myself. I've never been able to express to her that I've always thought she was the braver one for having stayed home. Running away is easy. And figuring out that running away is easy is the best lesson to have learned from leaving home. People who leave home often boast about the lives they've built for themselves out of nothing. Nobody ever tells you that the best time to build something is when you have nothing because you have nothing to lose. Watching some DVD extras this week after a movie I came across an interview in which the moderator based his question to the director by first laying out this premise. That all writers are essentially bastards (or assholes I can't remember which). That he, the moderator, was most qualified to say this because he himself was a writer. Writers, he said, live in their own worlds. They create worlds and even the most talented writers are obsessed with their own perception of the world; its what creates their art--their perception. Am I an asshole? Are my friends assholes? Is this what makes an artist? The ability to selfishly indulge in one's one thoughts or perceptions? Or is this just the red herring question everyone of a certain age asks themselves? And by that I don't mean an actual age, but rather someone who has never really wanted for something. Someone who has never been tested by circumstance to want something that they can't readily access or conquer. Is it a question of the over privileged? Privileged not by wealth but by an abundance of choices and circumstance.

So on this the 18th Day of Christmas, I acknowledge that the things I want most this holiday are things that can't be readily given. But I'll settle for this, that when my friends finally land and they are met by an equally agitated family member who has been circling the crowded airport for two hours (not having known about the delay) that they are all suddenly awash in good cheer. That for some unknown reason a warm holiday feeling floods back into them and they are able to see themselves in the family that they see so little of.

Robin Gerber: Oprah's Other Favorite Candidate - Entertainment on The Huffington Post

Last night and this morning the media is reeling with Oprah's first campaign trail appearance along side Obama. There are at least four other blog posts on the Huff Po all about the impact Oprah will make by endorsing a candidate. Robin Gerber believes that this is just the most obvious showing of Oprah's politics a planned out foray which was vetted by having Morgan Spurlock and Micheal Moore appear on her show. Gerber's stance is Oprah's politics have been "showing" since the beginning of her show this year. Oprah amassed a fortune and an army on the weight of her politics. The truth is Winfrey's politics only seem to be showing because the country's political climate under the Bush Administration is becoming more and more strained as they single handedly wipe out the middle class; Winfrey's base. Oprah's had other politicians on her show before to discuss their beliefs and stances on issues facing the U.S. People forget the show she hosted during California's Governor 's race where she interviewed her good friend Maria Shriver and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Oprah's politics are exactly like the politics of this country. They shift according to what will be best for her own interests whether those interest are directly related to her own well being or that of her friend's Winfrey will always stand by what she believes is right. And in the end isn't that something we're all guilty of?

Thankfully as she hits the campaign trail this time I agree with her.


Robin Gerber: Oprah's Other Favorite Candidate - Entertainment on The Huffington Post

On the 7th Day of Christmas...

Comfy cozy things are my down fall. Its no secret I've got a permanent case of the lazies. If I could stay home all day and talk to no one just read and play with the computer that would be heaven. I also don't like to share, but that's another story. Anywho, it should come as no surprise than that I already owned a pair of warm winter slippers to ramble around my apartment in. So when my boyfriend suggested new slippers from Restoration Hardware I balked.

After he bought his and I tried them on I insisted we go by me a pair the next day. Foot duvets is an excellent description. You better get you some!

Luxury Plush Foot Duvets Eucalyptus

On the 6th Day of Christmas...

As if I didn't love the interweb too much already, I give you Songza! There are some instances where we've been able to stump it, but by and large you can hear almost any song.

Recently, I wanted to try and find a copy of Shirley Ellis's Clapping Song. I wasn't able to find it anywhere, but at least with Songza I can hear it.

On the 5th Day of Christmas...

100 Notable Books of the Year - 2007 - New York Times

Matrimony sounds the most interesting to me. After watching the British "Up" series this year I've been most interested in projects that track people's lives. For the stories but also for the artists who put all their effort into one life long project.

On the 4th Day of Christmas...

Amazon.com: Oprah Winfrey and the Glamour of Misery: An Essay on Popular Culture: Books: Eva Illouz

Seems like I'm not the only one obsessed with the power of O. This is a mighty pricey book...maybe its out of print and my thesis surrounding Lady O still has a shot.

1. The Road Not Taken. Frost, Robert. 1920. Mountain Interval

1. The Road Not Taken. Frost, Robert. 1920. Mountain Interval

Which way would you go?

The Browning of History

I couldn't resist the link for this SF gate article this morning. Months ago when Ken Burns' The War was set to air the Chronicle's t.v. critic Tim Goodman put out a scathing column detailing his outrage toward Latino groups who pressured Burns to include a segment on Latino veterans in Burns' film. The column stuck in my mind because I've always admired Goodman's reviews, his sense of humor, and his taste in television. So when I read the article it pissed me off. It was like a friend had reached out from my monitor to slap me in the face. His argument was one I've had with friends for years. Where is the line between art and personal social responsibility drawn? Is it Ken Burns' responsibility to add every shape and color of veteran to his documentary? Do groups have the right to pressure artists to change their art?

Well, in the Burns case I would say, yes, yes they do. Documentaries are a form of chronicling history and given all of our "new media" platforms, I think more and more they are going to become history. Strict written narratives will be replaced by a more interactive way to view our history through film footage- of first person accounts, still and moving pictures, coupled with voice over criticism- that medium will be the history books of the future. And Burns, has the rating to prove he is our most popular teacher. So this morning when this link presented its self I thought, now what? What is this? Is this the Chronicle's way of making up for Goodman's hissy fit? I'm I suppose to feel appeased?

Whatever my feelings, once I read the comments section it became clear that the majority of Bay Area residents felt the article did nothing more than put a "liberal" slant on a day when we are suppose to be honoring all veterans. In their passing comments about "another liberal skewing propaganda laced Chronicle piece" they failed to recognize their own indifference to Latino veterans. Or they didn't, some made hostile comments pointing to the two movies made shortly after the war that did include Latino protagonists to prove that the subject had been addressed.

Disgusted, I returned to the Chronicle's homepage shaking my head and resolved to let it go. Further down this morning's home page is an article providing advice on buying property in Mexico.


Veterans Day is a time for forgotten Latinos to be recognized

FRONTLINE: the undertaking | PBS

I meant to post this last week to coincide with the Day of the Dead, but life got in the way. While flipping channels around I found a Frontline which wasn't about the War on Terror, Iraq, or 9/11 and it caught my attention. It was billed as "the business of death," but really it was about the personal relationships behind those who die and the undertaker. I'm not sure if it was Frontline's intention or if it just happened, but two of the participants who sought out consultations eventually do die by the episode's conclusion. Several times the undertaker comments that Americans are so far removed from death and that in our rituals surrounding death we are actually celebrating life.

His comments trigged in me memories from when I was about eight and we went to Mexico to bury my Step-Dad's Father. Back then, and possibly in some places still, they held the wake in the family's home. The body stays in the house with you surrounded by candles in the parlor for three days until its burial. I vaguely remember passing it on the way to bed and in the morning while going outside to try and escape the scorching heat in the house. Other than the odd feeling when passing it I don't have any other connection to the event. While watching Frontline I sat through the scenes of bodies being prepared for burial and thought how odd it was that our society is so removed from death. Maybe in part its why we don't seem value life as much as we used to.

FRONTLINE: the undertaking | PBS