the clintons discuss dylan

Bill and Hilary Clinton discuss the presidency and Bob Dylan winning the Nobel Prize for literature (not)

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edible pizza box

The Americans are always so much ahead of us when it comes to stuffing your face with classy food.

Now they have a Pizza box that's actually made out of pizza, and therefore edible as well!

They advertise 'No Waste', but l wouldn't like to be the one cleaning their toilet bowls the next day.

Those crazy yanks etc...

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joe cole in america

Joe Cole is currently seeing out the end of his career playing football in America for The Tampa Bay Rowdies.
Doesn't he look happy to be doing so. It looks like a prison mugshot.
He should cheer up. He's living in America, and will be earning a hell of a lot more money than me (but that's not difficult).

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eating from bowls

Eating from plates is just sooooo passe. The way forward is to eat from bowls, it's what all the hot skinny people are doing. It's a 'trend with traction', and they are conveniently photogenic for sharing on social media - proper instagram friendly, and no mistake.
Don't believe me? The New York Post are on the case. I'll never eat from a plate again. After all, it's the same food, but just not as good. Plus you've got the mind numbing task of having to push your food to the middle of the plate to mix it up a bit. What????
BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOORING.
Come on - join the bowl revolution brothers and sisters. This is the sort of stuff my great grandfather fought and died for. Let's make him proud that his death wasn't in vain.

As for my bowl, l just don't want most of the crap featured above in my one. It does mean that l can now smother my baked potatoes in even more butter, something l never thought would be possible, so hurrah! for the hipsters and their innovative forward thinking ideas.

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donald trump and boris johnson

The Daily News have got it spot on, an old adage that is still true today.
I think Donald Trump is a joke, but a dangerous one, who may well get elected.
Normally l would say 'Only in America', but then l think of our own loveable nincompoop, Boris Johnson. l wouldn't be surprised if he rocks up in the future as the leader of the Conservatives, and possibly the country. A bright man pretending to be a bumbling idiot, who has not hidden the fact that he thinks some people (let's face it - the poor) are too stupid to improve their lives. I suppose it's still better than the spoon fed idiots acting bright that we are lumbered with at the moment.
But not much.
Bring on the revolution!

                                                         Possibly our future 'glorious' leader

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the flaming lips and miley cyrus on the conan show

I'm a big fan of The Flaming Lips, and they are at their bonkers best on this recent Conan show appearance with Miley Cyrus, performing The Beatles 'A Day In The Life' with a magical swirling cape.
I also dig Wayne Coyne's longer hair style - very Bolanesque.



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serial - the podcast series from an american life

Adnan Syed

Hae Min Lee

Serial is a podcast series, a spin off from 'This American Life', and was one of the most riveting pieces of real life drama that l have had the pleasure of listening to, despite (or because of) the fact the series was dealing with real events, real people, and a real murder. Plus because you are only listening to the show, your mind fills in loads of gaps, and it is easy to become really engrossed and involved with it, probably more so than if you were watching it on TV.

From episode to episode you are left reeling, not knowing what to believe, or who to trust, and swinging from 'That person must have done it' to 'Damn! It's probably that person instead'.

The gist of it is this. The murder of Hae Min Lee takes place in Baltimore, and her ex boyfriend, Adnan Syed, is charged and convicted of the murder, mainly on the testimony of one of his so called 'friends' who said he helped Adnan move the body.

There are phone calls aplenty to Adnan, and interviews with others involved. Court records and statements are scrutinised, and re-enactments of movements undertaken. Even the person behind the interviews and podcasts, Sarah Koening, doubts her own judgement as the evidence mounts one way or another.

I don't want to give away the ending, but all of this is in the present, and still ongoing, and l cannot recommend it enough.

Superb stuff.

It can be downloaded from here.

Do it!

Now!!

As a bonus, here's the spoof Saturday Night Live Christmas version

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the secret homosexual handshake

Praise the Good Lord that we have people such as Mike Huckabee to prevent us all turning (he would probably say backsliding) and batting for the other side.
No wonder l have ended up in the past performing unnatural acts with gay men in toilets, and have seriously been thinking about changing my sexuality to full on homo.
Maybe there is a God after all - Hallelujah! I am now saved!!.

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two photographs of chicago

Two stunning photographs of Chicago.  One of the skyscrapers rising above the clouds (by Brandon), and one with the city reflected in Lake Michigan (by Mark Hersch).
I prefer the bottom one myself, as it looks so unreal, and almost Heavenly (if there was such a place).

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kenichi ebina dancing on america's got talent

Now this guy is good.
Kenichi Ebina showing how it's done, and busting (see how down with the kids l am?) some moves l have never seen before.
From the Chicago auditions for America's Got Talent.

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michael smiths small town america

 

These shots of small time America from back in the day look really realistic, but they are from a project called 'Elgin Park' by Michael Paul Smith, who has been photographing small models and scenery that he has built, using real landscapes as backgrounds, with splendid results.
The photographs are available to buy, and there are more photographs, plus more about the project (and shots of the photographs being set up), at his site, which can be found here.
I always have a grudging respect for anyone who is devoted enough to follow their artistic bent to such a degree, but this must take up a hell of a lot of his time.
I wonder if he is married?

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shane black - adventure is calling time lapse video

This time lapse video by Shane Black (Adventure is Calling) was shot using over 10,000 photographs he took during a couple of months travelling the USA, and it is stunning.
He (and a couple of friends) quit their jobs to go travelling and take photographs, and it has certainly produced some great images.  It sounds ideal, but l would be a bit dubious about spiders (especially the large sort) crawling into my tent in some of the remote locations and biting my bum (amongst other things).
More information is available at the National Geographic website.

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everybody loves a pirate

Who's this little scamp dressed up as a pirate?  Non other than the current president of the good old US of A (that's America to non  Americans) , who has just faced down the Republicans and the Tea Party. Yessireeee ladies and gentleman, it's non other than Barack Obama himself.  Because everybody loves a pirate.

On a related note, l used to be a bootlegger, rogue and rodgerer, and here's my new parrot talking back.   Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr me shipmates, a man and his parrot, what on Gods green earth could be more satisfying? (or could send them both insane).  Man or feathered beast - it's a battle of will and intellect (I think l am in trouble)

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football, bloody hell (the biography of alex fergusun) - patrick barclay

'Football, Bloody Hell' was the famous line uttered by Alex Ferguson (now Sir Alex) after the 1999 Champions League final (European Cup final in old money) after Manchester United had come back from 1-0 down in the dying moments to win the game 2-1 in injury time.  Football doesn't get much more emotionally draining, as that was also the culmination of a treble, and as a Manchester United fan, watching the game at Nevada Smiths in New York, following United could only go downhill afterwards.
However, l still persevere, there's always a new season (with or without Alex Ferguson), and always more football to watch, and football books to read.
This biography didn't tell me a lot that l didn't already know, but Patrick Barclay is a reporter from the old school, who goes way back with his knowledge of players, managers, events and games, so it was still highly entertaining for the likes of me.  Like Ferguson himself, Barclay can be a stubborn old coot with strong opinions (catch him on Sunday Supplement), but l am all for that (being one myself).
Now l'm eagerly awaiting Ferguson's autobiography - out before Christmas!.
I'll admit it, I'm an addict.

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the construction of the hoover dam

Whenever l go to great structures, l am usually astounded at the time, effort, and skill that had been used to build them, and how impressive they are.  I wouldn't know where to start on such large projects (apart from delegating all of the work).
The Hoover Dam, between Arizona and Nevada, is a fine example. The construction of it, even more so. When there, standing at (or on) the edge, it is mightily impressive, and well worth the trip out to see it it if you are in Las Vegas (hire a car).
It was built in the mid 1930's and previously known as The Boulder Dam, drawing it's water from The Colorado river, forming Lake Mead, and like anything high up, it draws you to the edge, or at least it does to me (as did The Grand Canyon).
About 100 people lost their lives working on the dam, and l wouldn't be taking a wild guess that they would have been the poor old labourers, working for peanuts (whether they were allergic to them or not),  who, during the depression (when it was built), Health and Safety regulations would have been pretty slack, or non existent as far as they were concerned.
Still mightily impressive, and an excuse to feature this song.

Sugar - Hoover Dam.



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breaking bad - my take and family guy's take

Ok Ok, I know everyone has been gushing about Breaking Bad, but as l have recently watched all of the episodes from the beginning to the bitter end (over 60 hours worth!), l thought l should at least post something, but without giving the ending away (although everybody probably knows it by now). I had seen the first series years ago, but decided to start again so l wouldn't miss anything significant, and I'm glad l did. It was one of the best TV dramas that l have ever seen, even if l thought they were clutching at straws a bit towards the end, with the involvement of the Nazis. Saying that, the 'Ozymandias' episode in season 5  was the best of the lot, and will be up there as one of the best hours worth of TV - ever!. For those that don't know, it is a poem by Shelly about the decline and disappearance of a once great ruler, and let's just say the title was perfect.
The cinematography throughout the series was interesting, quirky and evocative, and as for the acting,  Walter White (Bryan Cranston) performance was colossus, and most of the supporting characters added an immense amount to the story arc, tension, comedy and believability. Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) as Walt's sidekick was magnificent, but there were so many others that also excelled, especially the fast food owner Gustavo Fring (Giancarlo Esposito), general all round fixer Mike Ehrmantraut (Jonathan Banks), and lawyer to the poor and the dodgy, Saul Goodman (Bob Odenkirk).
My abiding memories will be the shots of the desert and the inside of machines, the walk out of a room after an explosion (with the unexpected facial shot afterwards), plus the high levels of tension and numerous twists and turns that kept you always wanting more (rather like the metamphetamines they were cooking).
It has now joined the likes of The Sopranos, Six Feet Under and Boys From the Blackstuff in my personal higher echelon of televisual delights.
I suppose now l should get round to watching The Wire.

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the walker library

A clutch of fossilized dinosaur eggs

A field surgeon’s kit from the American Civil War

A first edition Encyclopedia Britannica, published in 1768

A French map from 1692 that depicts California as an island

A full skeleton of a juvenile raptor (about the size of a cat) - 45 million years old

A globe of the Moon signed by 10 of the 12 astronauts to have walked on its surface

An Egyptian wooden sarcophagus (approx. 1800 BC)

An original backup of the first artificial space satellite, Sputnik

First image of the eye of a fly through a microscope, published in Hooke’s Micrographia (circa 1666)

Flag flown to the Moon and back on Apollo 11

Hand-painted illustration of Noah’s Ark from the Nuremburg Chronicles, the first illustrated history book (circa 1493)

I've written about The Walker Library before, but l am so envious of the contents, that l am going to do so again.  If l was a multi millionaire, the contents feature the sort of stuff l would collect, and l also love the way it is displayed. I'm pissed off l don't live near its location in Stamford, Connecticut, as l would love to visit the place (school trips are welcome), but they would have to frisk me properly, otherwise some of the items might be leaving with me attached to my jam covered sticky fingers. As far as l am aware, this is the resulting accumulation fired by Jay Walker's imagination, curiosity (and money). If l still had a cat, l would go and boot it in frustration.
More about the library and it's contents here.

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