Month: September 2005

Prambulator!

I would be the coolest dad ever if I had this! I love this thing, although it doesn’t look like it’s a light stroller.

The search for cool baby stuff is taking place even though there is no bun in the oven. Daddy Types, the weblog for new dads has the same approach to kids stuff as most men have towards cars.

My wife loves the Glarkware ‘Dingo snack” shirt, we can afford an IKEA ANTILOP high chair, we can’t afford one item from Modernseed. I may be able to get the wife onboard with an OrbitBaby baby chair/stroller/car seat system. Or not.

But raising kids is an exercise in moral and social responsibility. Little did I know that as potential parents that we would have to look out for fascist aggitators cruising the pre-schools for disillusioned tots.

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SF, originally uploaded by squirrelene.

Moog = Vogue @ Eyedrum: Analog Musical Heaven in Atlanta and Online

You may not know the guy but you know his machines. Robert Moog (sounds like vogue) made the electronic machines and keyboards that made groovey analog music possible. From the indie art enclave Eyedrum website and mailing list comes the following info on a Saturday night of Moog-themed events…

“An evening dedicated to the recently departed father of the Moog synthesizer and builder of theremins. Tonight’s lineup will feature a screening of the film “Moog” by Han Fjellestad.

Eyedrum will host a Bob Moog tribute on Saturday, September 17. Bob Moog, inventor of the Moog line of synthesizers and builder of theremins died last month. Eyedrum will pay tribute by showing the film “Moog” by Hans Fjellestad. This feature documentary film explores Moog’s collaborations with musicians over the years, and his ideas about creativity, design, interactivity and spirituality. The film was shot on location in Asheville, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Tokyo and London, featuring appearances by Keith Emerson, Walter Sear, Gershon Kinsgley, Jean-Jacques Perrey & Luke Vibert, Rick Wakeman, DJ Spooky, Herb Deutsch, Bernie Worrell, Pamelia Kurstin, Tino Corp. with Charlie Clouser, Money Mark, Mix Master Mike, and an eclectic mix of performers. This screening will mark the Atlanta premiere of the film.

MOOG [a film by hans fjellestad]

There will also be performances by local Moog enthusiasts (Neil Fried, Don Hassler, Howard Wershil, Zachary Hollback, Chris Swartz, Gene Thompson, William Silbernagel, Scott Burland, Robert Cheatham, Allen Welty Green, Oliver Smith, & Blake Helton) featuring many participants from last year’s Theremin Summit, as well as Dennis Palmer and Bob Stagner of Shaking Ray Levis from Chattanooga.”

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The Electrical Spectacle put out one of my all-time favorite albums. Analog keyboard instrumentals, real drummer, throwing down fast and grooving slow. The following review does a good job of describing the music of the band. Two of the songs are longer then 8 minutes, and all four are worth the download. MP3’s to be found at Electrical Spectacle “Mood Modulation EP”. I’d be curious to hear anyone’s reaction, and no, I have nothing to do with the band.

Welcome to the Best of New Orleans! Hot Seven 12 31 02

“Like this contagious club concoction, Electrical Spectacle looks to the past for innovation. A study in the vintage keyboard sounds of the ’60s and ’70s, the Spectacle’s retro-futuristic sound is the perfect antithesis to most of what goes on in the organic, roots-obsessed local music scene. The group’s massive Moog synthesizer collection sets the tone for electro-effects and the whirring of the theremin. “

Drinking With Bloggers + Pastafarianism and Our Open-Minded President


Got to see the faces behind the sites at last night’s APWBWGTTD (Atlanta People With Blogs Who Get Together To Drink). I didn’t know a soul, so when I first arrived at the Brewhouse, I found myself sitting with the wrong group of computer people. Glad it wasn’t the bloggers, because those first folks had an unfriendly vibe all around. One of their members accidently sat with the bloggers first, and he showed me where they were sitting. Younger, louder, and drinking more, the bloggers were much more promising.

Talked to;

Scott (Messages from the Ether) about black velvet paintings and art criticism…
Maigh who would make a kick-ass TV detective, grilled me about what I write on my site…
Lori (Mingaling) small talk, Vegas…
Lady Crumpet, small talk… and,
Suzi (Fat Asian Baby) about art stuff and her good taste in music.

A good night in all, but I missed Jon Stewart (The Daily Show), who is doing 4 part special on “Evolution, Schmevolution.” Some of the opponants of evolution are pushing science-lite “Intelligent Design” and trying to get it included in science curriculums in Kansas. It’s mainly a push from Christians, as I have yet to hear of a Buddist, Animist or Pagan I.D. proponant. The nice thing about intelligent design is that it does not attribute a specific designer, which allows for anyone to cite their architect of choice for complex life. And that’s where the Flying Spaghetti Monster comes to attention. Pastafarians have come to the forefront in promoting the F.S.M. as the creator of all that is around.

“Let us remember that there are multiple theories of Intelligent Design. I and many others around the world are of the strong belief that the universe was created by a Flying Spaghetti Monster. It was He who created all that we see and all that we feel. We feel strongly that the overwhelming scientific evidence pointing towards evolutionary processes is nothing but a coincidence, put in place by Him…

…I’m sure you now realize how important it is that your students are taught this alternate theory. It is absolutely imperative that they realize that observable evidence is at the discretion of a Flying Spaghetti Monster. Furthermore, it is disrespectful to teach our beliefs without wearing His chosen outfit, which of course is full pirate regalia. I cannot stress the importance of this enough, and unfortunately cannot describe in detail why this must be done as I fear this letter is already becoming too long. The concise explanation is that He becomes angry if we don’t. “

There are many that have written the website of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster with email condeming them for blasphemy and offering their forgivness as their faith askes of them. I love that the writter of this email…

“You already have faith if you believe anything you have never seen is true…I have heard and I accept you into my heart Jesus.

Now you will see for yourself the power of Christ!”

… is Brian Hull (BrianHull@boydgaming.com) of Vegas-based casino and gambling empire Boyd Gaming Corporation. One would think that Christianity runs counter to gambling. But the Skeptic’s Annotated Bible provides pro-gambling/anti-gambling bible scriptures and author of “The Book of Virtues,” by William J. Bennett sure had some strong ideas on what to do with his publishing profits.

Anyways, I’m sure George Bush would not mind including Flying Spaghetti Monster in the evolution studies as he recently remarked, “I think that part of education is to expose people to different schools of thought, and I’m not suggesting — you’re asking me whether or not people ought to be exposed to different ideas, and the answer is yes.”

Atlanta's Search for a Slogan & Graffiti

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Atlanta Graffiti Stroll I, originally uploaded by brookenovak.

I’ve only been living in Atlanta for a month. But I’ve been reading about the city’s search for a slogan since I read the Bloglanta: Identity, It’s What’s in a Slogan! post in August. Slogans bring to mind a specific image of a city. Sin City… “What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas.” The Big Easy… “The City that Care Forgot.”

So, Atlanta… um… hmm… While I can’t think of a slogan, I can start with how I see the city and what my slogan would try to capture.

Fertility: this city is overrun with growth, plants, and people. Houses and buildings perched on hillsides, roads carved every which way and everything surrounded by lush, green growth. Life abounds in Atlanta in a myriad of forms.

Decay: with abundant life comes decay. Trees become old or diseased. Buildings, abandoned or lost to fire. The ebb and flow of the city can be seen in where people have lived and where they have left.

Reclaimation and Reuse: this is where the pictures of graffiti started this line of thought. Just like industrial architects could have never imagined their factories turned into trendy lofts, graffiti turns anything into a canvas for its purpose. Now I’m not advocating property damage (which is what many property owners see it as), but some of the graffiti in town is just great art. And it’s that creative spirit to take something like an old industrial complex and turn it into something like the StudioPlex. Atlanta is not just a Southern city, historic in nature and successful in a wide variety of business and social ventures. What little I’ve seen of the city’s strengths seem to be ones that give Atlanta the flexibility and capacity to turn liabilities into positives.

So, I’d be curious what people who have lived in Atlanta for more than 31 days have to say about their city and what personifies it. And forgetting the city slogan, I think that Mr. Fangs should be Atlanta’s adopted mascot.

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Brooke Novaks’ Graffiti photoset got me started on this whole line of thought.

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Mr. Fangs, originally uploaded by brookenovak.

Atlanta Photostroll 8.5 (Half a Stroll?)

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20050905-01, originally uploaded by elvisthefish.

This picture and many more by Elvis the Fish at Atlanta Photostroll 8.5. The photostroll has become a regular thing here in our photogenic city and you can see more Flickr pix tagged with atlantaphotostroll85. For other pix just search for “photostroll” plus a number, 1, 2, 3, etc. I will be adding all the numbered “photostroll” links under the catagory “Atlanta Flickr and Photos” to the left.

Entertainment Recap: Penguins, Spaceships & The Salton Sea

It’s the beginning of week four since our Atlanta move. Now that we are here, we get to take advantage of all the great features of the city: food, movies, music, etc… I hate that we missed Sealab 2021’s white-boy rapper MC Chris. We blew too much money furnishing the new apartment that day and had to go without a live version of the Star Wars rap masterpiece “Fett’s Vette.” Which can be downloaded from his site.

But we have seen movies:

March of the Penguins @ Lefont Theater Garden Hills – the Lefont’s a cute single screen theater in Buckhead. We parked on the street, walked a hundred feet and were in the door. The Lefont chain has one of the best pre-movie “buy-our-candy-don’t use-the-phone” movies. Most other theaters’ just suck, and why is that? Penguins are awesome, the movie was good, and one person wonders What Has Our Society Come To When March Of The Penguins Is The Blockbuster Hit Of The Summer?

Serenity @ AMC Phipps Plaza – I got the free movie pass while buying cds/comic books at Criminal Records. The movie was great, the Dragon-Con fans were loving seeing their favorite characters from the now-cancelled show (Firefly), and the two old ladies who were expecting a quiet movie (which the name would imply) left when Summer Glau was impaled in the head with some sci-fi medical device. Sci-fi fans, go see a smart movie that actually has a decent plot that pays off in the end.

Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea @ Eyedrum – It took me more time than expected to find this tucked-away art space near the Oakland Cemetery, but totally worth it. This documentary was one of the last movies shown as a part of the Atlanta Underground Film Festival. The Salton Sea is a man-made lake, a mistake that has remained since the turn of the century. The movie features the folks that make it home, including “Hunky Daddy,” a drunken, Hungarian freedom-fighter who loves his bit of American paradise. The Salton Sea is an environmental disaster waiting to happen, and one that will probably happen in our lifetime.

Movies I still want to see… Murderball, Broken Flowers, Howl’s Moving Castle, Megacities, and maybe The Aristocrats.

Suggestions, reviews, contributions?

Dragoncon 2005: Revenge of the Midriff

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Dragoncon, originally uploaded by MDL.


Okay, that’s it! Britney Spears had way too much influence on this year’s DragonCon! Mark Lusher posted the top picture as part of his 2005 DragonCon pictures. In searching for his picture, I found the second picture. Now I have no beef with costuming or cross-dressing, but a boy’s belly-button has no place in the Empire. What would the Emperor think!

The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer – 4

This is the 4th edition of “The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer” and it’s nice to have a local offering for the first time. The National Archives & Records Administration, Southeast Region Archives is located close to Atlanta, in nearby Morrow, GA. Their website has an online exhibition of images, including the one above, taken in 1951 and from documents from the Tennesee Valley Authority. Click the image for a slideshow of TVA images, and check out the exhibition page for more documents and pictures.

Note that NARA allows for copies of records to be made. So these pictures may all be available for purchase.

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The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer – 3

The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer – 2

The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer – 1

It's Art Friday! Hurray, Art!

Why is it “Art Friday”? Reason #1.

My next paycheck will be from the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center. Got to aid in the installation of their upcoming show, “Red Beans and Rice.” Me, I was helping Arthur Liou, a video artist and professor at Indiana University. The curators are Kóan-Jeff Baysa and Craig Bunting, both very nice guys and on the “enjoyable” end of the curatorial spectrum. The other end is “indulged megalomania, with delusions of splendor.” I met that one working at the Guggenheim.

Kóan-Jeff Baysa edits the online art mag art::pulse and Craig Bunting has a site, Running Film, which is an online gallery of his work and collaborative works with John Lair.

Why is it “Art Friday”? Reason #2.

The new Franz Ferdinand song “Do You Want To?” is pretty good, and the video makes fun of pretentious art gallery culture. Click the picture to give your bandwidth a workout and see the boys make fun of Duchamp.

Sez one funny guy, “Wow, that video was like the art-rock version of “Fight For Your Right To Party”. I’m not sure if that makes it great, ridiculous or both.”


“I hear your friends are all so arty!”

A Whole Bunch of Atlanta Pix

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Junior Raindrops (Maybe on Irwin & Krog), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

See these raindrops look all innocent. But when raindrops get together, they form gangs. Gangs of wild raindrops! See this educational animated movie from 1948, The Adventures of Junior Raindrop for the drippy truth!

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Slow Down in Cabbagetown, originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

Damn kids!!!

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Hiiiii !!!!! (On Decatur), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

This guy reminds me of a hawaiian guy I worked with at the MGM.

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6th St. Fixer-upper 1, originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

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8th St. Fixer-Upper, originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

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Six Feet Under (Oakland Cemetary), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

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Watertower (Irwin & Auburn), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.