Tag: embedded movie

Miscellaneous Things Done in the Last Two Weeks

Went and saw the movie Paprika. Beauty of a movie about the dream and real worlds merging. But for all its artistry, I don’t think of it as one of the great animated movies. Extremely good, but not great. For fans of animation and especially Ghost in the Shell.

Saw the self proclaimed “King of Country Western Troubadours” Unknown Hinson at the Earl. He definitely deserve the term “guitar virtuoso.”

Did 4th of July with wife and friend on top of a Downtown parking garage.

But by far the best thing I did was attend the AV Geeks collection of bizarre flicks at Eyedrum. Amber emailed me and told me about the fun to be had, and it was the best 5 bucks I’ve spent in a long time. Strange school and industrial movie gems are curated by Skip Elsheimer. He presented the movies and ran the movie projector. The show that he put together was titled “AV GEEKS Greatest Hits.

“Telezonia (1974) Kids are whisked away by a manchild in white tights, so they can sing about using the telephone. Creepy, but not in the way that you think.”

If you got the time this movie is a great example of the full-bore weirdness that is a 70’s industrial flick with a budget. Starts rather normally, but don’t let that fool you.


“Crash Bang Boom” (1970) 10 min We learn about percussion instruments featuring marching bands, dancing kids and a groovy rock band.

Malakapaladoo Skip Two (1977) 10 min A cute film for kids about using their imagination or a clay-laced, folkmusic opus to hallucinogens? You decide.

Drugs Are Like That (1979) 16 min An attempt to warn kids about the dangers of drugs using Legos and a catchy song to make its point. Anita Bryant narrates!

Shake Hands with Danger (1980) 23 min A truly inspired film that uses a country music song to illustrate the dangers of working on heavy equipment. Some fake gore too!

VD is for Everybody (circa 1970) 30 sec A public service announcement that uses an infectious song to talk about an infectious disease.”

All of these are on the AV Geeks’ Greatest Hits DVD, which would make a great gift for lovers of the bizarre, fans of 70’s fashion and me. It I hadn’t spent all the cash I had just to get through the door, I would have grabbed a DVD or two.

You can also check out some of their publicly available movies on archive.org.

Atlanta Planet Pride Heyyy 2007

The hood is hopping. Pride weekend is in full force this weekend. The danger of living in a neighborhood this close to the parade route is wanting to say “Happy Pride weekend” but not knowing the persuasion of the people walking by.

We saw three guys walking around and I said, “Which one is Cadillac and which one is Tom Cruise?” Don’t understand the reference? Spend 3 minutes with this genius bit of animation and you will.

Happy Pride Weekend!

Searching for Culture in Houston

Our move to Texas is still months away but I am cruising the web for places of interest in Houston. I feel like by the time we get there I’ll be pretty well schooled in the city’s attractions.

One source for unique Houston locations is Hot Town, Cool City. Included is a map ( I *heart* maps), links to the locations, and a trailer to a movie of the same name as the site.

http://video.google.com/googleplayer.swf?docId=704096850860276417&hl=en

“Houston’s people are not just friendly —they are intimate —the City and its people are intimate, passionate, and diverse. It is the power of these qualities which makes Houston a COOL CITY. The passions of artists, chefs, philanthropists, business owners, and individuals have built a city of hidden gems that are right out in the open. When we read between the lines defined by the freeways we find a treasure map, with those gems waiting to be discovered.”

The Aurora Picture Show looks like a great arts movie venue. The preview got me intrigued, and isn’t that what the movie is for! Its seems like a big ra-ra-cheerleader lovefest, but that’s okay. It’s nice to see people enthused about their city and for good reasons.

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Also found, this great picture of Houston at night.

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Foggy Lady, originally uploaded by Erci.

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My Houston Google Map
Houston – a photoset on Flickr
Flickr: Photos tagged with nationalmuseumoffuneralhistory

My Music

So, is it any good? Ehh… you tell me.

I had been working on songs for almost a year when the computer suffered a bit technical difficulties. All that music gone, except for a few remaining files. Some songs are more finished then others. Now hosted freely on archive.org (for downloadable MP3s) , I put a few surviving files up for public scrutiny. On the player, select a song to hear.

Rarely do I feel like I made something I set out to. I love bands/DJ’s like Justice, Soulwax, Whitey, Erol Aklan and other mostly dance-happy, electronic bands. But I haven’t made anything that reached their caliber. And probably won’t.

The main reason I put the music there is that some of the music I found online is really obscure and/or odd but I like it. But it was put out there to be found. If someone is happy to keep one of these songs as their own, I’ve done the same as someone did for me. Since I haven’t spent any real money, I can’t complain. Originally created on Apple’s free software, hosted freely at Archive.org and streaming with free code… I can afford that.

And more music will be added in the future as it gets finished.

ATL Happenings: Mom-n-Pop, Mod Homes & Derby

First, a thanks to Creative Loafing’s Bad Habits blog for mentioning me in their Atlanta Blogs Today: PBJ-AJC-WTF post. The spike in visitor traffic was a nice ego boost. And for those who are reading because of CL, don’t make it your last visit here.

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Spring is back, making Atlanta particularly enjoyable. Its nice to return to the city in its lovely state, and this coming weekend is providing me with three things of interest.

First: the ATL:MODERN HOME TOUR – April 27-29th – 2007: “The 2007 ATL:Modern Home Tour will focus on showcasing exemplary examples for living modern through lifestyle, architecture, interior design, and landscaping. Homes range from the classic postmodern to the state-of-the-art contemporary.”

Yes, I would like to see great architecture that I will never be able to afford. Thanks for letting me past the gate.

Second: my mom and pop are visiting. As snowbirds, they are driving from Florida back to their home in the north. I always look forward to their visits as they actually treat me as a competent adult. They still have the usual parental concerns, but I’m aware that I’m lucky have parents that managed to let go in ways certain parents can’t.

Third: Atlanta Roller Girls Rollerderby!



I’ve missed 3 season games, and this weekend has the local girls playing the Pikes Peak Derby Dames of Colorado Spring, CO. This coincides with my mom and dad arriving. While my mom has a deep dislike of rollerderby and wrestling due to her mom’s love of the sports (yes I know some will raise an eyebrow at using the word “sports”… deal). Apparently , Grandma Gates got pretty vocal while watching her favorite forms of televised violence in the family living room. But I hoping dad will join me for the game. He’s a people person and enjoys a bit of cultural anthropology.

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DeKalb News, Atlanta News: Rollergirls’ Bea Ligerent Hits Hard…

Atlanta Rollergirl Mini-documentary by Scott Crocker

Things that Make Me Happy/Sad

Happy…

Oh, hell yes! Looking like a post-Easter peep left in the sun, this dancing blob of joy is a thing of beauty. Since I don’t dance, I want this one to do it for me.

Sad…

Oh, Comcast and HealthCare of Atlanta, your spellcheck has failed you.

Being married to an english prof. means that when I hear a sigh of disappointment often a proofreader has not done their job. She has pointed out so many public misspellings on businesses, ads, etc. This televised mistake is a particularly bad example.

Misspellings and typos are also the reason she won’t read my blog, once the corrections start when would they stop? I try to be good, but I can’t blame her for not taking on the task of correcting the whole blog.

Maybe the dancing blob will make her happier.

Adult Swim = Porn?

Somehow a conversational tangent in the house went something like this…

“This (meaning the item in the above Youtube video) HAS to be for porn!”

“You’d watch porn on it?”

Well, you wouldn’t let me watch porn on it, but you would let me watch Adult Swim on it.. like Aqua Teen or Frisky Dingo. Which sounds like porn!!! Which Adult Swim cartoons sound like porn?…”

“12 oz Mouse.”

…Much, much laughter from me!!! Love…her… so… MUCH!!!

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BTW, went to the Cartoon Network show at the Museum of Design Atlanta. Will post pix soon.

And for those who don’t know:

Adult Swim – Wikipedia
Aqua Teen Hunger Force – Wikipedia
Frisky Dingo – Wikipedia

Atlanta Waterpark Takeover: Damn Skatepunks!

ATL WaterPark Tour 2 (Black Market)
http://youtube.com/v/hLJLI2jFcCE

I feel old that I can’t do this and yet smarter for never trying. But the bruises and blood do seem to be well worth the fun these skate kids had at Six Flags White Waters (Wikipedia entry) during the off-season.

When the Daily Show is Even Better than It Should Be…

I’ve been watching the Daily Show since before Jon Stewart started hosting it.  Since his time at the show, it’s been turned into one of the wittiest, sharpest, and most critical “comedy” shows today.  But one of last week’s shows was a highwater mark in intelligence and risk taking, with its introduction of Aasif Mandvi, the show’s Muslim correspondent.  Watch and see some of the edgiest satire I’ve seen.

Daily Show – Aasif Mandvi
http://youtube.com/v/L5-4Kes8kws