The Travels and Rants Journal

1. Since our last post, things have been looking better for our friend Barbie. Here’s our girl and her blond man-toy Ken, starring in their own porn video. In the past I never really thought of Barbie as sexy, but I am beginning to rethink this. In all seriousness, this is one of the funniest things you will ever see, and an actually somewhat artistic little video. Watch it.

2. And while we’re on the subject of videos… How to untangle headphones using a cat. Don’t forget to floss.

3. And while we’re on the subject of visual things… from Slowpoke Comics: “Gay Republican Guilt Camp” by Charlottesville cartoonist Jen Sorensen hits the nail straight on the head. So to speak.

4. Went out to see Jesse Winchester last night at Gravity Lounge. He’s just a musical treasure. You’ll just never hear anyone sing with such effortless phrasing. Not to mention the fact that he’s a genuinely funny guy, a kind and gentle soul, and seems to get wiser and sweeter and more graceful as he gets older. If you’re an artist, and a man, I think the best thing you could hope for as you get older is to one day turn into Jesse Winchester. And old song, but a good one…

I’m the type of guy who likes it right down the middle
I don’t like all this bouncing back and forth
Me, I want to live with my feet in Dixie
And my head in the cool blue North
And there we’ll do just as we please
It ain’t nothing but a breeze

-Jesse Winchester, “Nothing But A Breeze”

Cut from the same cloth is local songwriter Paul Curreri, who opened the show and sang a sweet duet of “All of Me” with Jesse. Paul’s also talented, thoughtful and funny - you could imagine him being Jesse’s son somehow. Shows like this make me so glad to live here - live music is among the best things in the world. Thanks to Jesse, Paul, and Gravity.

5. I love this photo more than I can say.

1. Clearly, things have not been going well for Barbie lately. From Boing Boing: How to make a Barbie electric chair. The photo alone is priceless…

This is perhaps not the most politically correct science fair project, but it definitely gets attention. And although it is more based on presentation than science, most people find it very interesting to learn how an electric chair works.

2. The new iPods (which look like iPhones) are out. And the older iPods got an update. I’m more interested in the updated older ones - all I really want an iPod to do is play all my music (and, thanks to my new photo transfer plug thingy, store pics off my camera’s memory cards), so the idea of a bigger hard drive for the same money will make me happy in the event my iPod ever needs a replacement.

3. Current event department: Blogger visits the Senator Larry Craig Memorial Mens Room.

4. Motel floor.

1. Don’t let anyone tell you this man couldn’t write, or that he was just a one-dimensional, country songwriter:

The smell of your hair I know is still there, if most of our leaves are blown
Our words still ring in the brush and the trees where singing seeds are sown
Your shape and form is dim but plain, there on our mountain bed
I see my life was brightest where you laughed and laid your head…

-Woody Guthrie (music by Billy Bragg and Wilco), “Remember The Mountain Bed”, From Mermaid Avenue, Volume II

2. Esmont:

1. Went out tonight to see Left of Center’s presentation of Julian Bond speaking on “Crossing the Color Line: From Rhythm and Blues to Rock and Roll”. It was an interesting and thoughtful speech. Bond’s premise is that R & B music’s influence on rock and roll made it “safe” for whites to be more open to African-American music, culture, and people in general.

I’ve always thought this was true in my own life (though in a completely different decade from Bond’s well-presented history lesson). Seventies artists like Stevie Wonder, the Temptations, and Sly and the Family Stone opened my eyes to people and cultures and ideas that were completely foreign to my sheltered little experience.

2. Have a chair.

1. Movies:

Witness for the Prosecution: A suspense classic. Well acted, funny, pacing is perfect. Charles Laughton carries the whole movie. 4/5.

Rest in Pieces: A Portrait of Joe Coleman: From the beginning, this is disturbing, strange, difficult to watch. It oscillates between a 1 and 5, ten times a minute, throughout the entire film. But in the end, it’s a movie I’ll never forget. Visionary artist documentary filmmaking at its most engrossing and all-consuming. 5/5.

Tideland: Whoa. I mean, I love Terry Gilliam. And this is about as Terry Gilliamistic as they come. I’m sure a lot of people would be (deeply) disturbed by the film’s content. Me, I was just disturbed by the fact that, in spite of it being a sometimes beautiful look at what goes on in Gilliam’s head, it’s really not a very good movie. Still it gets a two because it makes me laugh to visualize some studio head at some point actually greenlighting this. 2/5.

Angel Face: Great noir. Robert Mitchum is his usual Mitchumesque self, which I usually like, but I didn’t quite believe the whole auto-mechanic/ambulance-driver thing somehow. Still, it’s a great film. 4/5.

Dark Days: I was really excited about this documentary about a culture of homeless people living in underground Amtrak tunnels in NYC. But other than a few poignant moments, you don’t really care much about the people, and what could be a cool look at a hidden culture doesn’t ever come across. 2/5.

Babel: One of those multiple-storylines-woven-together films. Well done, well shot, well acted, but just a couple of notches below what it might have been. Still, it’s somehow reassuring to think that Brad Pitt can have a really bad day. 3/5.

Inside Man: A perfectly crafted Spike Lee action flick. Both Denzel Washington and Clive Owen assert their talents well, and the plot is clever and well-paced. 4/5.

The Ballad of Ramblin’ Jack: A sweet little documentary by Jack Elliot’s daughter about her folk-singing dad. Surprisingly honest, balanced and careful, and featuring interviews with everyone from Arlo Guthrie to Odetta to Kris Kristofferson. 4/5.

Sid & Nancy: I had seen this back when it came out. The bio-pic of Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious and his bizarre/annoying girlfriend Nancy Spungen. It’s dark, disturbing and difficult. But a well-crafted look at the 70’s punk scene in all its self-destructive glory, and a wise tale about the disconnect between celebrity and talent. 4/5.

2. Coat hangers.

Today me and The Girl tried to dye our hair with jello.  It didn’t really work, and I apologize that no photos were taken.