In St. Paul news, my Dad, a veteran of the SPD, gives the new police chief the thumbs up. Apparently the guy is even a West Sider, like myself. And sometime tomorrow I will be stopping by the estate sale of a St. Paul warlock, in his Summit Avenue mansion. I’m not getting my hopes up for crazy pentagrams and grimoires or anything, but perhaps he’ll have more than just the usual run of the mill knick-knacks.
Five other good things for this fine Thursday:
- I’m a long-time Lightning Bolt fan (already have my ticket for the Triple Rock show on July 15th), but didn’t realize the bass player likes to make a lot of noise not just in his band, but also when scoring video games. Watch this video. Pretty neat behind-the-scenes peek into the Providence scene.
- Was perusing a blog about new, experimental music. “If you are interested in improvised/electro-acoustic/electronic music, you might find something to investigate further.” Interesting. And in this blog I was reminded that I need to check out Shirin Neshat’s film, Women Without Men. Looks like mighty powerful stuff.
- This Saturday is Free Comic Book Day! Hooray! It’s my son’s favorite holiday. And I have been meaning to pick up Batman & Robin, Volume 1, Batman Reborn. I’m only a sucker for some superhero comics, honest. The St. Paul Craftstravaganza is also happening on Saturday, just down the road from The Source, but I need to chill on my spending.
- Speaking of comics…good news! “Bone to stay in Minnesota school district’s libraries“
- In random news, someone found one of my Red Owl Crew tattoo photos on flickr and commented by pointing out her own. Perhaps she can be an honorary member of the R.O.C.?
The next several weekends promise to be pretty damned busy. Birthdays, BBQs, yardwork and gardening attempts, shows, shooting a wedding, etc. But hoping I can squeeze a trip in to Fawn-Doe-Rosa Wildlife Park for the kiddo. I think he’d get a kick out of feeding the animals.
Wednesday, April 28, 2010
As a long-time vegan I often find myself engaged in the same discussion with different people. About my initial ethical/environmental/health reasons for going vegan and why I remain vegan. Sure, a lot has changed since I first went vegetarian. People seem to be more aware of awful factory farming conditions. Many are opting to consume meat that comes from animals raised more naturally, and locally, on free range farms. This is better for the environment and for the animals but personally? I’ve never looked at other living creatures and thought “mmmmm, meat” - guess my brain is wired differently. But I am glad more people are at least thinking about where their food comes from. This has been encouraging. Because somewhere along the way, in just the last couple of generations, a pretty huge disconnect has grown between the food on our plates and its point of origin. And this has all been on my mind even more after seeing the South Park Quality Meats project, executed by a crafty flickr contact who encourages curiosity in her kids. Her son Enzo wanted to learn more about meat and wound up being a butcher for Halloween, with his very own butcher shop, made out of plush materials.
Tangentially related? Some oddball out there has come up with Domokun butchery. Yes, meat section diagrams of my beloved Domokun and his buddies. And somehow this ties into another topic that came up at work this morning: mellified man aka human mummy confection, “a legendary medicinal substance created by steeping a human cadaver in honey.” Morbid topics on the mind this Wednesday morning.
Now for today’s five good things:
- Oh man, I would LOVE to be in New York for the 7th Annual Arab-American Comedy Festival. Go if you can.
- Cool photo essay on queer kids by photographer Mike Sharkey. Nicely done. Not quite kids anymore, but tonight the Untouchable Girls documentary is showing, about New Zealand’s lesbian yodeling twins, the Topp Twins. Looks fantastic.
- How on earth did I miss the Ben Folds tribute to chat roulette improv pianist Merton?
- Frat boys doing an a capella performance of Lady Gaga’s Bad Romance. And it’s surprisingly good. In other campy music news, I have always adored Adam Ant. Here’s an interesting snippet of an interview with him, regarding his formative experiences with Malcolm McLaren.
- These 1895 Calendrier Magique Lithographs are simply incredible.
Colored Lithographs by Manuel Orazi. A rare piece of occultist ephemera, printed in an edition of 777 copies to commemorate magic for the coming year of 1896. Each double page spread mimics the Christian calendar in some respect (name days, iconography). The document is at once a spoof and an attempt to chart the year of magic.
In other news…Spring 2010 started off a little bumpy for us but managed to smooth itself out along the way. And things have been pretty grand. But as April is ending and May begins (this Saturday!) I’m slightly on edge about next school year. The St. Paul School District has been too preoccupied with proposed school closings to send out confirmations regarding school choices for Fall. I still have my fingers crossed for the arts magnet for my (big) little man. Only time will tell, I guess.
I’m not sure exactly when it happened, but I feel like my son has turned a corner with his reading skills. It’s flowing a lot better, even if he still complains bitterly about it. And he’s been scoring 100% on his spelling tests at school, though he says the tests are stupid. No idea where the boy gets his stubborn attitude problem from. Nope, no idea at all. Ahem. Anyhow, last night he made it through a good portion of an Encyclopedia Brown book without needing much assistance at all. But when I attempted to explain what an encyclopedia was? He interrupted me with a dismissive “yeah, yeah, like on the computer.” No, honey. Like information found in BOOKS. Kids these days.
Five good things for this fine Tuesday:
It would seem I’m taking a day trip up to Duluth next week. It’s been a while since I’ve been there, kid-free style. Much of the day will be spent digging through book stores and secondhand stores. And I may just give the sustainability-focused Sara’s Table a shot. Any other suggestions?
It was another deliciously full weekend. Spent Friday night at home, with friends, watching them delight in the wonder of the world’s weirdest book - The Codex Seraphinianus. Saturday saw the boy and I venturing over to a clothing swap with a bigger group of friends. Thankfully I left with less clothing than I’d arrived with (which is sort of the point) but did walk away with several pleasing new pieces. And taking photos of friends trying on ill-fitting clothes is always hilarious, of course. That evening was John Henry’s big 30th Birthday Bash at the Turf Club and again, it was non-stop fun, even if I did get smeared with greasy cake frosting - full of food coloring - by drunken friends.
Five other good things:
Sunday the kid and I were very much on the same page…really wanting a quiet day to stay at home. Which means we did miss out on the Gopher State Cat Club event, in Hopkins, but some good friends got over there and documented the craziness for us. We were content to just stay in and make things. The boy came up with new creations in modeling clay, which I baked in the oven for posterity. But only after I’d baked a loaf of bread, a batch of cookies and a butternut squash which I turned into a curried soup - to have with a side of red kidney beans sauteed with onions, garlic, ginger, celery, assorted spices and spinach - which made for a very tasty dinner indeed. That, combined with a lot of laundry washing and bill-paying makes me feel a little more prepared for the week ahead. Sometimes I like the quiet. Anything to keep stress levels from skyrocketing. And this morning that includes listening to the ambient/droney black metal of Velvet Cacoon.
Yesterday afternoon I stopped by Succotash (a vintage/retro store) and while chatting learned of the Velveteria. I can’t believe I didn’t know of its existence! Plus it was OPEN when I was in Portland! I was in near proximity and had NO IDEA. Alas it has since shut down and the owners have returned to California with their amazing collection of black velvet oil paintings. And it doesn’t look as though they’ve reopened anywhere yet. Sad. Other bits and bobs that have caught my attention in the last 24 hours:
- Yesterday morning one of Clockwork’s owners told me that I’d been in his dreams the night before. Running around his neighborhood. Up and down his street. Wearing baby blue footie pajamas. Hmm.
- MN Original is a new project from my pal Chuck Olsen. Last night the pilot episode aired, but can be seen online, in its entirety, here. The inaugural episode features amazing Minneapolis photographer Alec Soth (who I just mentioned), as well as blacksmith/welder/metal sculptor Heather Doyle and two members of Trip Shakespeare now performing as The Twilight Hours.
- In other local arts news, I am tempted to see The Wrestler:
Quinton Skinner reviews Mixed Blood’s production of Kristoffer Diaz’s pro-wrestling fable, “The Elaborate Entrance of Chad Deity,” and finds that beyond the body slams, there’s a nuanced story about idealism and the American Dream.
- In music news, Devo will play at the MN Zoo but it’s too damned expensive! But the Am-Rep Records 25th Anniversary Show happening in Minneapolis in August is not to be missed. With Melvins, Boss Hog, Hammerhead, The Thrown Ups, Today Is The Day, Gay Witch Abortion, God bullies, Vaz, and White Drugs. And “Music Is Math,” a talk by David Cross lookalike Chris Weingarten on internet music writing.
- Airborne cats are WAY better than cute boys with cats.
- It’s always the ones you least suspect. From my unassuming looking friend who is a unicorn fetishist - yesterday’s word of the day: macroherpetophile. Someone “who wants to fuck Godzilla. Well… a herpetophile is sexually attracted to lizards. Macro, of course, indicates great size. There is a huge Macroherpetophile community on the web although they have seemed to go underground since the 90’s” but there is Godzilla Bukkake. Yep. Oh lord, and that led to something else. Achtung! The following is NSFW. In fact, it’s more NSFWTF. Dragons having sex with cars.
- Way more up my alley…stories of superstition vs. science, with beautiful art? That’s my favorite! Eldritch by Drew Rausch and Aaron Alexovich is pretty darned amazing. I look forward to reading more.
And we yet have another busy weekend ahead of us. Friends and music and BBQs and gardening projects and parks and libraries. No complaints here.
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
In news of the out-with-the-old-and-in-with-the-new(old) variety, this weekend some friends are hosting a clothing swap. Possibly in honor of tomorrow’s Earth Day (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)? Tonight I need to begin digging through my wholly disorganized closet. And the weekend after next is the huge 100 mile garage sale that spans Minnesota and Wisconsin. And I do believe there is more thrifting in my future. I’m already filled with regret, after not having purchased a musical instrument last night at Unique Thrift. It took some googling but I’ve come to realize it was a zither! And am now kicking myself. I ought to go back for it. Everything is 25% off on Tuesdays. Perhaps it will still be there next week.
Now for five random items of interest:
Somehow I missed this before. BBC Autism season kicks off:
Beginning on April 22nd, a follow-up film to last year’s successful The Autistic Me will be aired. Called The Autistic Me: One Year On, the documentary revisits the people who were in the original film and finds out how their lives have progressed.
I need to see that. And on that topic, I tried to suppress my own knee-jerk reaction when I saw the title of this article: “I give my autistic son pot” - as mother and writer Marie Myung-Ok Lee attempts to educate others about how “a useful and harmless botanical have been so clouded by stigma” in a three part series. Part one, part two, and part three. My heart goes out to her and her family…while also making me feel deep relief that my own son’s autism is nowhere near so severe.
Things continue to go swimmingly. We had yet another mighty fine weekend with gorgeous weather. And another quick trip to Cake Eater on Friday, along with other errand-running (new more comfortable patio chairs were acquired). My son had plans to see the MONDO Spectacular Variety Show Saturday night with my lovely ex, and to sleepover, which gave me an evening out. I dropped the lad off before venturing out for some late afternoon Record Store Day action. Only made brief stops to Road Runner and Extreme Noise, but still. Then it was dinner at Kinh Do and a little time with friends on a front lawn - with a cat happily hanging out on a leash - before the evening’s aural onslaught began. Sometimes I am the little engine that could. I powered through three shows: Skoal Kodiak at MCAD, Young Quitters / Visions of Christ / Growing in the 7th Street Entry, and lastly Thunderbolt Pagoda at a semi-secret location. I would have liked to have gotten to The Wedding Present at the 400 Bar and to get a glimpse of the lineup over at the Turf Club as well, but I haven’t quite perfected cloning technology just yet. And who really wants an army of me running all over town?
Some Monday morning weirdness:
We rounded out our weekend with a Sunday night BBQ with friends. The early arrival of a warm Spring has made such things possible (and Picnic Club will be starting up again soon). I managed to derail conversations, as I do, and push things into puberty territory. On my mind, after this business with my boy. And getting other people’s own puberty talk tales only leads to much hilarity (and much cringing). Less loaded topics came up too though. Like Iceland, which came up in conversations a few times over the weekend. Often I talk about how I’d love to return but maybe not just yet. “It seems we’re getting pretty good at exporting our disasters,” said Egill Helgason, a political commentator and host of a well-respected political talk show. “I think people might get funny ideas about Iceland.” But, he quickly added, “We’re not to blame for an eruption.” This is true. And speaking of Iceland…Jónsi (from Sigur Rós) will be performing two shows this weekend at the Pantages Theater in Minneapolis. Alas, tickets are spendy and there are other shows and happenings happening, as always.
My Thursday was super ultra fantastico. A friend is now a co-worker! And another co-worker friend came over to my house after work to begin the raised bed garden planning, in earnest. And my sitter friend came by so I could get out to see Brute Heart and Daughters of the Sun and oodles of friends at The Hex. And today is payday PLUS my federal tax refund automagically appeared in my account today (never mind that I’ll be handing the bulk of it over for summer camp). And my lovely child will be having a sleepover tomorrow night so I’ll have an entire evening off. And we have a BBQ with friends to look forward to on Sunday. All of these elements combined have put me in a pretty stellar mood.
Now for five good things, life aquatic style:
Despite all the happy and fun (or maybe because of it) I decree tonight shall be reserved for taking care of business. Like renewing license plate tabs. Restocking groceries and sundries. And hitting up the art supply store. My boy has a hankering to make some more slugs out of clay. Who am I to question such creative impulses? And perhaps there will be fire. Our first of the season in our crumbling firepit. Yes. Life is good.
If I were seeking signs of an impending apocalypse now might be a good time for it. There was last night’s brilliant fireball streaking across skies over the Midwest, with its smoke plume visible on Doppler Radar. But no cause for alarm. Just a meteor. Or was it?
Then there’s Iceland, with its volcanic activity. These photos are particularly amazing but the eruption is causing problems, what with ash is grounding flights in UK and Northern Europe. And in the U.S. it is TAX DAY today. Thankfully I don’t have to pay in. The combination of my income/single parenthood/homeownership means I generally receive a refund. A fact I will celebrate tonight by procuring the services of my babysitter/friend so I can step out to see some local bands I enjoy.
Really, I don’t see signs that the end is nigh. Life is good (but trouble will come when you least expect it). And the weather has been particularly mild in Minnesota this Spring (which is suspicious, in and of itself). Which has me thinking about BBQs and road trips. The usual suspects near Lake Pepin - Pizza Farm and Lark Toys. Day trips to Duluth. Possibly a return to Chicago (it’s been since 2007!) and I’ve just learned about a friend’s Taco Farm. Though it doesn’t sound like it will be very vegan-friendly it would still be worth the trek to Turtle Lake, with the right companions. To that end I’ve been putting together new summer 2010 road trip playlists. But listening to them right now is making me want to get up and GO. Instead I’ll be content to lounge on my sunny front porch. For now.
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
You ever feel like you’re playing connect the dots - spending so much time scrambling to get A connected to B then lined up to C, ad infinitum, with all your focus down in the nitty gritty in macro mode, that you lose sight of the big picture? Maybe it’s just me but I’ve been feeling that way. A LOT. As I tackle items on my massive To Do list. Sure, I am task-oriented so it is satisfying to get things done. I guess that’s better than being completely apathetic and without direction. My direction is forward. Always doing doing doing. But some days it is so TEDIOUS. [/end whining]
My major accomplishment of the day involved connecting the dots for summer day camp for the kid. This came with an unexpected side effect. We are now gym members again as this summer program is offered through a community center with a gym. And summer camp is cheaper for members ($1888 instead of $2548 - but ouch). I had canceled our YWCA membership to save money but the new gym is just a fraction of the cost, and it does have a pool. Albeit a very basic one. I’m afraid my son has been spoiled by fancy indoor pools with water slides. When I was a kid going to *any* pool was a real treat, let alone an indoor one. And I only have one memory of visiting a pool with slides, out in Spring Lake Park in the 80s. Instead our only option was to go play in White Bear Lake, even if it had THE ITCH. Ick. So I think my kid can make due with a clean, slide-less indoor pool, if he must. Somehow he will endure.
Thankfully his foul mood finally lightened up a bit. Before dinner he approached me with a huge grin on his face…and his previously loose tooth in his hand. I was just telling a friend about all the teeth that have been falling out of the kid’s head lately. This friend’s initial reaction was TOTAL ALARM. Before he realized that hey, that’s what happens when you are a kid. Baby teeth fall out to be replaced by adult-sized chompers. It’s not like my son will be toothless and require dentures. Or that he’ll continue losing teeth throughout his life and keep getting new ones, like a shark. Though that could be kind of cool.
Speaking of evolutionary advantages…I heard an interview on NPR the other day with one of the animal critic bloggers (a satirical response to Cute Overload?) - read/listen at NPR: Why The Animal Critic Gives The Panda An F. Or visit their site directly, where their most recent review was of jellyfish (C-). And holy wow do they ever have disdain pandas and alpacas. Big fat Fs for each. At least they do give the octopus an A for being so super ultra smart. Alas, even with their big brains my beloved cephalopods don’t always come out on top. Here is some disheartening footage of a sea lion methodically making a meal out of an octopus.
In another tangent…I’m looking forward to seeing British street artist Banksy’s documentary, Exit Through the Gift Shop, opening at one of the Landmark theaters in Minneapolis on April 30th. This is incredibly silly though, celebrities caught “tagging” at the film’s premiere in LA. Groan.
No more tangents for now. Instead I plan to ease the whirring of the gears in my busy brain. Best remedy? Curling up in bed with a book. While trying not to think about how I should be working on my own book…
