Fuck!
Here's to your fuck, Frank!
Now it's dark...
I can't believe it. Prostate cancer ate his bones. Dennis fucking Hopper.
This blog is becoming a obitorio.
29 May 2010
28 April 2010
Feeling a little bulletproof today
...maybe it's because of all the Link Wray i've been listening to lately, a real bent.
19 April 2010
He played it left hand...
...but strung right-handed!!! Thick-ass .016-gauges on that gold-sparkle Strat, strung right-handed!
Dick Dale! Let's Go Trippin'! Riders in The Sky! Banzai Washout! Shake-N-Stomp! The Wedge! Taco Wagon (exceptional rendition)! Dick-fucking-Dale!
House of the Rising Sun! Hey, Bo Diddley! Pipeline! Folsom Prison Blues/Ring of Fire! California Sun! Fever! Smoke On The Water! And...wait for it...Link Wray’s Rumble!
“Where am I?” And the crowd responded “Rome,” to which Dick replied, “No, I’m in Heaven!” Dick, you sly dog!
Actually, with the packed house at Locanda Atlantide and no air conditioning to speak of (a few ceiling fans, turned on about mid-show), it felt like Hell!
Problems with his mike tonight. His vocal was almost buried in the mix. At one point he gave the sound man a lesson on using the mixer's EQ. He then says to the sound man “More high end...make me sound like a special guy.” To which I had to respond, audibly, “But you are a special guy!”, which got a smile out of him and the band (who were right behind him all the way, Brian and Richie, if i remember correctly).
And of course his most-recognized hit here in Italy, thanks to Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, Misirlou. He even introduced it: “Hey, what's this song?” doing an impression of John Travolta dancing the Watusi! It was at this point i left my spot at near-front-center for the bar for the tourists and met up with my friends Paolo, Francesca...and Jack.
Of course there was more. I can only remember so much. I believed he played for about three songs more.
Dick Dale. Eyein’ and dealin’ the ladies at age 72! Dick Dale, doin’ the sonic version of Hitchcock’s Rope: it seemed like four or five songs the whole night because one thing just segued into another! Played for an hour and a half, maybe more, he was relaxed as hell, California laid-back, and did what the hell he wanted the whole time. He played the Strat, the trumpet and even duoed on the drums. He even took the sticks to his bassist’s bass! Dick Dale!
What? Of course there’re pictures (forgive my cameraphone)!
Dick Dale! Let's Go Trippin'! Riders in The Sky! Banzai Washout! Shake-N-Stomp! The Wedge! Taco Wagon (exceptional rendition)! Dick-fucking-Dale!
House of the Rising Sun! Hey, Bo Diddley! Pipeline! Folsom Prison Blues/Ring of Fire! California Sun! Fever! Smoke On The Water! And...wait for it...Link Wray’s Rumble!
“Where am I?” And the crowd responded “Rome,” to which Dick replied, “No, I’m in Heaven!” Dick, you sly dog!
Actually, with the packed house at Locanda Atlantide and no air conditioning to speak of (a few ceiling fans, turned on about mid-show), it felt like Hell!
Problems with his mike tonight. His vocal was almost buried in the mix. At one point he gave the sound man a lesson on using the mixer's EQ. He then says to the sound man “More high end...make me sound like a special guy.” To which I had to respond, audibly, “But you are a special guy!”, which got a smile out of him and the band (who were right behind him all the way, Brian and Richie, if i remember correctly).
And of course his most-recognized hit here in Italy, thanks to Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction, Misirlou. He even introduced it: “Hey, what's this song?” doing an impression of John Travolta dancing the Watusi! It was at this point i left my spot at near-front-center for the bar for the tourists and met up with my friends Paolo, Francesca...and Jack.
Of course there was more. I can only remember so much. I believed he played for about three songs more.
Dick Dale. Eyein’ and dealin’ the ladies at age 72! Dick Dale, doin’ the sonic version of Hitchcock’s Rope: it seemed like four or five songs the whole night because one thing just segued into another! Played for an hour and a half, maybe more, he was relaxed as hell, California laid-back, and did what the hell he wanted the whole time. He played the Strat, the trumpet and even duoed on the drums. He even took the sticks to his bassist’s bass! Dick Dale!
What? Of course there’re pictures (forgive my cameraphone)!
18 April 2010
Insomnia - late as usual
Just finished High Fidelity by Nick Hornby (no, i hadn't read it before nor seen the film: real life got in the way) and liked it in a light, Saturday-matinée-type way. I liked it lots actually. So what is that, four books so far this year? Not quite there on my quest to becoming as smart as Rory Gilmore.
Tonight i'm going to see the living legend, The Master of the Stratocaster, The King of The Surf Guitar, the reason Leo Fender created the Fender Showman 100W amplifier...the bulletproof Dick Dale! Jesus! Still snapping super-heavies on a European tour at 72! Grow up, man!
Feex is doing make-up videos on YouTube.
As if enough wasn't already written about Lady Gaga (no external link as it's impossible not to know who she is), i've repeatedly expressed my generally-favorable opinion towards her, repeatedly saying she's the new Marilyn Manson. Not the new David Bowie. After just watching her Poker Face video, i can now put a finger on why: Bowie was sexy, Manson never was. And for all of Gaga's truly fantastic art direction and oil-slick music production, she isn't either. She’s Quentin Tarantino, not Martin Scorsese.
Tonight i'm going to see the living legend, The Master of the Stratocaster, The King of The Surf Guitar, the reason Leo Fender created the Fender Showman 100W amplifier...the bulletproof Dick Dale! Jesus! Still snapping super-heavies on a European tour at 72! Grow up, man!
Feex is doing make-up videos on YouTube.
As if enough wasn't already written about Lady Gaga (no external link as it's impossible not to know who she is), i've repeatedly expressed my generally-favorable opinion towards her, repeatedly saying she's the new Marilyn Manson. Not the new David Bowie. After just watching her Poker Face video, i can now put a finger on why: Bowie was sexy, Manson never was. And for all of Gaga's truly fantastic art direction and oil-slick music production, she isn't either. She’s Quentin Tarantino, not Martin Scorsese.
09 April 2010
Malcolm McLaren
Joey just told me that Malcolm McLaren passed away. Full story, of course, from the BBC website.
As i wrote to Joey, culturally speaking, what would our lives have been like without Malcolm McLaren?
Thanks, Malcolm.
As i wrote to Joey, culturally speaking, what would our lives have been like without Malcolm McLaren?
Thanks, Malcolm.
04 April 2010
De-evolution in action
In 2009 when i switched on a light...it came on. Instantly. All my life in the 20th and 21st centuries, that's the way a light bulb worked.
In 2010 i switch on a light...and it takes seconds, many seconds, before i have the equivalent of 75W of lumen.
In 2009, when i turned on the hot water, after a brief wait, i would scald my soapy hands under the hot water, turning on and mixing in some cold water (i had two-valve faucets in the bathroom sink, bidet and shower). If i took a shower longer than 15 minutes, my 50L electric boiler would exhaust its supply of hot water. It would take roughly an hour or more before the boiler would reheat another 50 liters. Not to mention the toll on my electricity bill.
In 2010, when i turn on the hot water, i have to waste two liters of water before my new gas-powered water heater, with a mighty whoosh of ignition, spits out hot water. And when i scald my soapy hands i turn the mono-valve to near-center position where there is an near-imperceptible drop in temperature. If i put the mono-valve position to less than center, the water heater shuts off and i'm left within seconds with cold water. If i shut the hot water off, wait a moment and turn it back on, another two liters of cold water run by before the entire process repeats.
I've yet to see the electric bill.
In 2009 when i wanted to watch television, i switched it on...and it came on. Pretty much instantly. Audio was immediate, the cathode-ray tube warmed up and in 3-5 seconds i was seeing an image. I changed channels, be it network TV or satellite, and they changed...instantly. It would take roughly a half a second, a perceptible but brief moment. When i watched television i watched it in a 4:3 format. Some programs had a horizontal stripe running across the top and bottom of the screen (known as letterboxing, usually when a cinematographic film is being broadcast). But this was a mere PAL analog signal, only 720x576 pixels.
In 2010 when i watch television, with the new 21st century High Definition digital signal, i switch it on...and i wait. Sometimes nearly a minute. Ok, maybe not a minute but an incredibly long time for a television to display a broadcast image. Oh, i'm seeing an image almost immediately, two lines of white text in the upper left corner of a black screen telling me i'm (going to be) watching an HDMI signal either in 1080i or 576i...when the decoder in the flat-screen LCD TV finally decides to decipher the digital signal it's receiving. And when it finally does decode an image to the screen, it's usually distorted. More often than not, my intelligent digital television can't differentiate between a 4:3 PAL signal and a 16:9 PAL signal. And thanks to the love between the italian government and Sky Italia, i can't watch HD DTTV while watching satellite. And thanks to the fact that the italian Prime Minister, ergo the head of the RAI, is also the co-founder and largest shareholder of the largest italian private broadcast network, the RAI still doesn't broadcast normally in HD, while all three Mediaset channels broadcast regularly in HD DTTV.
All this is when you can actually receive a DTT signal...
When i was a kid, videophones were the stuff of science fiction. The Jetsons had them. The crew of the Starship Enterprise had them, but only onboard, come to think of it.
In 2009, cellular telephony had already achieved the ubiquity and reliability (or unreliability) of landlines. But VoIP, now that was finally becoming commonplace. “Jane, stop this crazy thing!!”
In 2010, the conversations via Skype between my wife and her mother are usually along the lines of...
Is this all a "get off my lawn" rant?
In 2010 i switch on a light...and it takes seconds, many seconds, before i have the equivalent of 75W of lumen.
In 2009, when i turned on the hot water, after a brief wait, i would scald my soapy hands under the hot water, turning on and mixing in some cold water (i had two-valve faucets in the bathroom sink, bidet and shower). If i took a shower longer than 15 minutes, my 50L electric boiler would exhaust its supply of hot water. It would take roughly an hour or more before the boiler would reheat another 50 liters. Not to mention the toll on my electricity bill.
In 2010, when i turn on the hot water, i have to waste two liters of water before my new gas-powered water heater, with a mighty whoosh of ignition, spits out hot water. And when i scald my soapy hands i turn the mono-valve to near-center position where there is an near-imperceptible drop in temperature. If i put the mono-valve position to less than center, the water heater shuts off and i'm left within seconds with cold water. If i shut the hot water off, wait a moment and turn it back on, another two liters of cold water run by before the entire process repeats.
I've yet to see the electric bill.
In 2009 when i wanted to watch television, i switched it on...and it came on. Pretty much instantly. Audio was immediate, the cathode-ray tube warmed up and in 3-5 seconds i was seeing an image. I changed channels, be it network TV or satellite, and they changed...instantly. It would take roughly a half a second, a perceptible but brief moment. When i watched television i watched it in a 4:3 format. Some programs had a horizontal stripe running across the top and bottom of the screen (known as letterboxing, usually when a cinematographic film is being broadcast). But this was a mere PAL analog signal, only 720x576 pixels.
In 2010 when i watch television, with the new 21st century High Definition digital signal, i switch it on...and i wait. Sometimes nearly a minute. Ok, maybe not a minute but an incredibly long time for a television to display a broadcast image. Oh, i'm seeing an image almost immediately, two lines of white text in the upper left corner of a black screen telling me i'm (going to be) watching an HDMI signal either in 1080i or 576i...when the decoder in the flat-screen LCD TV finally decides to decipher the digital signal it's receiving. And when it finally does decode an image to the screen, it's usually distorted. More often than not, my intelligent digital television can't differentiate between a 4:3 PAL signal and a 16:9 PAL signal. And thanks to the love between the italian government and Sky Italia, i can't watch HD DTTV while watching satellite. And thanks to the fact that the italian Prime Minister, ergo the head of the RAI, is also the co-founder and largest shareholder of the largest italian private broadcast network, the RAI still doesn't broadcast normally in HD, while all three Mediaset channels broadcast regularly in HD DTTV.
All this is when you can actually receive a DTT signal...
When i was a kid, videophones were the stuff of science fiction. The Jetsons had them. The crew of the Starship Enterprise had them, but only onboard, come to think of it.
In 2009, cellular telephony had already achieved the ubiquity and reliability (or unreliability) of landlines. But VoIP, now that was finally becoming commonplace. “Jane, stop this crazy thing!!”
In 2010, the conversations via Skype between my wife and her mother are usually along the lines of...
“I can't hear you...”...and so forth. My niece and i via iChat are often reduced to pixel art, when iChat actually allows us to video chat instead of throwing an error. My brother knows when i can't hear him on Skype because a wave of amplified ambient noise floods his speakers.
“What?”
“I can't hear you...”
“Is the webcam plugged in correctly?”
“I can't hear you...”
“Grey, what's wrong here?!”
Is this all a "get off my lawn" rant?
28 March 2010
Book Report
Just checking in, listing a few things:
Finished reading…
Workwise, i just delivered four episodes of Studio Universal’s Timeline interstitials: Belinda Lee, Il Padrino, Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino. This project may possibly be my baby for the remainder of the year. We'll see. After Easter, i’m scheduled to do the opener/closer and other motion graphics for a Boing project.
Finished reading…
- L’amore del bandito, Massimo Carlotto
- Other Voices, Other Rooms, Truman Capote
Workwise, i just delivered four episodes of Studio Universal’s Timeline interstitials: Belinda Lee, Il Padrino, Steven Spielberg and Quentin Tarantino. This project may possibly be my baby for the remainder of the year. We'll see. After Easter, i’m scheduled to do the opener/closer and other motion graphics for a Boing project.
28 February 2010
Photos
self-explanatory...well, in italian anyway...
*****
*****
There are these...ads(?) in the Metro stations...
...that aren't actually ads for anything...
...they're just serene photos of places far, far away,180° from where you're at while yr looking at them.
Whose idea is this'? I can't just dismiss them as unsold advertising space placeholders, because i can't believe that these prime ad spots are going unleased, first off. Oh, actually i hope i never discover the story behind it.
*****
*****
15 February 2010
Doug Fieger
Last night, my friend since childhood Dave wrote my to tell me that Doug Fieger, lead singer and co-founder of The Knack died. Hmmm. 57 years old. From cancer (unspecified).
I still have the ticket stubs from their concert in 1979 at Masonic Temple in Detroit.
Edit (2010.02.28): Fieger was afflicted with and ultimately died from lung cancer.
I still have the ticket stubs from their concert in 1979 at Masonic Temple in Detroit.
Edit (2010.02.28): Fieger was afflicted with and ultimately died from lung cancer.
08 February 2010
26 January 2010
Book Club 2009
Last year i resolved to start reading the books that i probably should have years ago but, for one reason or another, didn't.
2009’s Book List (in no particular order):
Why only five and a half books in a year? I usually read in bed and, well, on a good night i make it through five to ten pages before sleep takes over.
But, already devoured in 2010 was Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. Next up, Massimo Carlotto’s latest (i love Carlotto): L’amore del bandito.
Edit (2010.02.07): I just remembered i'd also read Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five. So that’s a whole six-and-a-half books for 2009! Nyaaahh!
2009’s Book List (in no particular order):
- Asimov, Isaac; Foundation and Empire
- Austen, Jane; Pride and Prejudice
- Gibson, William; Mona Lisa Overdrive
- Lee, Harper; To Kill A Mockingbird
- Melville, Herman; Moby Dick*
- Clarke, Arthur C.; 2001: A Space Odyssey
Why only five and a half books in a year? I usually read in bed and, well, on a good night i make it through five to ten pages before sleep takes over.
But, already devoured in 2010 was Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood. Next up, Massimo Carlotto’s latest (i love Carlotto): L’amore del bandito.
Edit (2010.02.07): I just remembered i'd also read Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five. So that’s a whole six-and-a-half books for 2009! Nyaaahh!
08 January 2010
Back In The UE/IT
Lufthansa LH 3841
Rome Fiumicino (FCO) - Frankfurt International (FRA)
Partenza: 10:10 lun 21 dic 2009 / Arrivo: 12:10 lun 21 dic 2009
Was informed i would be issued my seat for the second part of my journey at the gate in Frankfurt. Hmmm.
Lufthansa LH 0442
Frankfurt International (FRA) - Detroit Wayne County (DTW)
Partenza: 13:40 lun 21 dic 2009 / Arrivo: 17:00 lun 21 dic 2009
Departure delayed
Landed in Frankfurt to discover a near-riot scene at the Lufthansa gate. Apparently the flight from the day before was cancelled (apparently after waiting six hours on the runway) and a lot of people were looking to be reassigned seating. After asking if this was the line for the Detroit flight, i let slip “all these people actually want to go to Detroit?” Whilst watching a situation between some Turkish passengers and a Lufthansa representative, i was issued my seat by another agent. I don’t recall how long the departure was delayed but with the tailwind we arrived in Detroit with only a 20-30 minute delay.
Luggage lost (i forget their euphemism).
At my insistence for some assumption of responsibilty on their part (“Where are all my Christmas gifts? What am i going to wear tomorrow?”) i was issued a US$100 travellers’ check for clothes/expenses.
Heard about the “death or glory” Nigerian who set inadvertantly himself on fire on the Amsterdam-Detroit (i guess he wanted to go to Detroit too). The US embassy was alerted weeks before by the man’s father. US Intelligence’s reaction: too vague a warning. And now the elephant is again frightened by a mouse.
Luggage recovered and delivered on 23 December at circa 5:30am EST.
Lufthansa LH 0443
Detroit Wayne County (DTW) - Frankfurt International (FRA)
Partenza: 18:59 mar 5 gen 2010 / Arrivo: 09:05 mer 6 gen 2010 (il giorno successivo)
Flight cancelled due to “computer problems”
What does that mean, “computer problems?” At 22:00 we were informed that the flight was cancelled, we were issued vouchers for hotel and/or taxis and instructed to call the Lufthansa 800 number for information the following morning.
The following morning, i did as instructed and called the 800 number. I gave the representative my name and flight number and asked what my situation was. She shortly afterward informed me that my itinerary for tomorrow would be Detroit-Zurich-Frankfort-Rome. I said calmly but firmly that was unacceptable. I would not take a tour of Europe to accomodate them. After a longer wait on hold the woman, obviously flustered (i seriously have no idea why) told me that my itinerary was to be Detroit-Frankfort-Rome, basically the same except with a 24-hour delay. I even asked the woman why she was angry when it should be me the angry one, to which she replied in a frigid tone, teeth clenched i swear, “I'm not angry, sir.”
Just to verify this was so, i called again a few hours later and found my flight was confirmed as stated. By another representative.
Lufthansa LH 0443
Detroit Wayne County (DTW) - Frankfurt International (FRA)
Partenza: 18:59 mer 6 gen 2010 / Arrivo: 09:05 gio 7 gen 2010 (il giorno successivo)
Departure delayed circa one hour
The delayed take-off made my connecting flight impossible to catch. Does Lufthansa care? This has become just sloppy. A second-rate airline. The Lufthansa rep at the gate just couldn’t care less.
Lufthansa LH 3844
Frankfurt International (FRA) - Rome Fiumicino (FCO)
Partenza: 12:25 gio 7 gen 2010 / Arrivo: ? gio 7 gen 2010
Departure delayed circa 45 minutes
The gentleman at the new gate couldn't tell me when the flight would arrive, hence the question mark.
Lufthansa, never again.
Rome Fiumicino (FCO) - Frankfurt International (FRA)
Partenza: 10:10 lun 21 dic 2009 / Arrivo: 12:10 lun 21 dic 2009
Was informed i would be issued my seat for the second part of my journey at the gate in Frankfurt. Hmmm.
Lufthansa LH 0442
Frankfurt International (FRA) - Detroit Wayne County (DTW)
Partenza: 13:40 lun 21 dic 2009 / Arrivo: 17:00 lun 21 dic 2009
Departure delayed
Landed in Frankfurt to discover a near-riot scene at the Lufthansa gate. Apparently the flight from the day before was cancelled (apparently after waiting six hours on the runway) and a lot of people were looking to be reassigned seating. After asking if this was the line for the Detroit flight, i let slip “all these people actually want to go to Detroit?” Whilst watching a situation between some Turkish passengers and a Lufthansa representative, i was issued my seat by another agent. I don’t recall how long the departure was delayed but with the tailwind we arrived in Detroit with only a 20-30 minute delay.
Luggage lost (i forget their euphemism).
At my insistence for some assumption of responsibilty on their part (“Where are all my Christmas gifts? What am i going to wear tomorrow?”) i was issued a US$100 travellers’ check for clothes/expenses.
Heard about the “death or glory” Nigerian who set inadvertantly himself on fire on the Amsterdam-Detroit (i guess he wanted to go to Detroit too). The US embassy was alerted weeks before by the man’s father. US Intelligence’s reaction: too vague a warning. And now the elephant is again frightened by a mouse.
Luggage recovered and delivered on 23 December at circa 5:30am EST.
Lufthansa LH 0443
Detroit Wayne County (DTW) - Frankfurt International (FRA)
Partenza: 18:59 mar 5 gen 2010 / Arrivo: 09:05 mer 6 gen 2010 (il giorno successivo)
Flight cancelled due to “computer problems”
What does that mean, “computer problems?” At 22:00 we were informed that the flight was cancelled, we were issued vouchers for hotel and/or taxis and instructed to call the Lufthansa 800 number for information the following morning.
The following morning, i did as instructed and called the 800 number. I gave the representative my name and flight number and asked what my situation was. She shortly afterward informed me that my itinerary for tomorrow would be Detroit-Zurich-Frankfort-Rome. I said calmly but firmly that was unacceptable. I would not take a tour of Europe to accomodate them. After a longer wait on hold the woman, obviously flustered (i seriously have no idea why) told me that my itinerary was to be Detroit-Frankfort-Rome, basically the same except with a 24-hour delay. I even asked the woman why she was angry when it should be me the angry one, to which she replied in a frigid tone, teeth clenched i swear, “I'm not angry, sir.”
Just to verify this was so, i called again a few hours later and found my flight was confirmed as stated. By another representative.
Lufthansa LH 0443
Detroit Wayne County (DTW) - Frankfurt International (FRA)
Partenza: 18:59 mer 6 gen 2010 / Arrivo: 09:05 gio 7 gen 2010 (il giorno successivo)
Departure delayed circa one hour
The delayed take-off made my connecting flight impossible to catch. Does Lufthansa care? This has become just sloppy. A second-rate airline. The Lufthansa rep at the gate just couldn’t care less.
Lufthansa LH 3844
Frankfurt International (FRA) - Rome Fiumicino (FCO)
Partenza: 12:25 gio 7 gen 2010 / Arrivo: ? gio 7 gen 2010
Departure delayed circa 45 minutes
The gentleman at the new gate couldn't tell me when the flight would arrive, hence the question mark.
Lufthansa, never again.
18 December 2009
Reversal of fortune
I was not watching the TV, as usual, when a promo came on for Reversal of fortune...with Yello’s Liquid Lies as the background music...!
Who's responsible for that? Is it the same person who did the “Buone Feste” promo: three love story movies with Janis Joplin’s Piece of my heart?
Who's responsible for that? Is it the same person who did the “Buone Feste” promo: three love story movies with Janis Joplin’s Piece of my heart?
14 December 2009
Meanwhile in Milano…
Last night in Milan, the italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi was hit in the face with a souvenir of Milan’s Duomo (irony of ironies), suffering lesions to the face and a broken nose, by a man with a history of psychological problems.
In english (BBC)…
In italian (La Repubblica)
...and pictures too!
Yesterday afternoon (almost anticipating that evening’s events) on Sky Cinema X they ran The Boondock Saints. For those of you not familiar with the film, it’s about two brothers, deeply devout catholics, out to rid Boston (you gotta start somewhere) of all evil, evildoers included. In the end, it’s a philosophical question of “the ends justifying the means” and vigilantism.
My point is regardless of where you stand politically, or what your opinion is of Mr. Berlusconi, violence is never the solution.
I repeat: violence is never the solution.
That said…it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
In english (BBC)…
In italian (La Repubblica)
...and pictures too!
Yesterday afternoon (almost anticipating that evening’s events) on Sky Cinema X they ran The Boondock Saints. For those of you not familiar with the film, it’s about two brothers, deeply devout catholics, out to rid Boston (you gotta start somewhere) of all evil, evildoers included. In the end, it’s a philosophical question of “the ends justifying the means” and vigilantism.
My point is regardless of where you stand politically, or what your opinion is of Mr. Berlusconi, violence is never the solution.
I repeat: violence is never the solution.
That said…it couldn't have happened to a nicer guy.
08 December 2009
Subvertising
I just heard from the other room the latest TV spot from Calvé (no link, find it yrselves). It ends with the tagline…
Che Natale è senza Calvé?
(What kind of Christmas is it without Calvé?)
…because, God knows, the first thing i think of when i think of Christmas is mayonnaise.
Che Natale è senza Calvé?
(What kind of Christmas is it without Calvé?)
…because, God knows, the first thing i think of when i think of Christmas is mayonnaise.
07 December 2009
Happy Birthday, Louie!
You'da been ninety-eight wild years old today!
(Edit 2010.08.24: The original YouTube video was removed.)
31 October 2009
Baby Parking?
Subway ad for the upcoming MoaCasa interior design show...
Yeah, yeah, nothing really to see here. It's just...well, let's take a closer look at the information block at the bottom left...
Baby parking??? What's that all about? With activities (con animazione)?! Okay, so it's basically a "kids' area" where parents can leave their children to play while they peruse the furniture. It's just the choice of wording that is so...blunt. No euphemisms here. And in english too. Or maybe that's just enough to make "parcheggio bambini" sound euphemistic. It's just that i'd imagined hundreds of toddlers with bits subsituting pacifiers tethered like horses all aligned like so many cars in the Ikea parking lot.
Yeah, yeah, nothing really to see here. It's just...well, let's take a closer look at the information block at the bottom left...
Baby parking??? What's that all about? With activities (con animazione)?! Okay, so it's basically a "kids' area" where parents can leave their children to play while they peruse the furniture. It's just the choice of wording that is so...blunt. No euphemisms here. And in english too. Or maybe that's just enough to make "parcheggio bambini" sound euphemistic. It's just that i'd imagined hundreds of toddlers with bits subsituting pacifiers tethered like horses all aligned like so many cars in the Ikea parking lot.
29 October 2009
Girls, girls, girls
I'm been on assignment in Trastevere and during lunch i like to walk around the area. The sun's out, it's still not cold out and i've always liked that neighborhood.
Two days ago, i ran into an former AE student of mine, Marta. She was walking her dog (i'm assuming it was her German Shepard). She's a very pretty girl and seems to have become even prettier since i'd last seen her last year. The girl told me on the last day of classes last year she thought i didn't like her, that i have something against her. Which is completely untrue. In fact i was taken aback by her comment and to this day i have no idea why she thinks/thought that. I even remember complimenting her on her work. She actually showed a bit of talent.
She says she and Ilaria (another former student of mine) are taking a regione-sponsored class in "open-source graphics." "Open source? Like GIMP and Blender," i asked. I asked because italians are famous for adopting english words or phrases and tacking on a different definition. But she confirmed it was exactly what i thought. I asked how she was getting along with The GIMP and she politely answered just fine. I confessed i've never gotten along with The GIMP (for production purposes). We then said our goodbyes, quite stiffly.
Yesterday, while taking my lunchtime stroll, i ran into Marianna, a girl i'd met last year while she was working for the same Trasteverian production house i'm freelancing for these days. She used to speak english with me and spoke very well, sometimes not even revealing an italian accent. And she didn't speak to show off, which is a common defect here. She was always very sweet and was just as same yesterday. So, that was very pleasant! She was with two colleagues of hers; she's working at an advertising agency somewhere around there. Of course i didn't think to ask the name or where exactly it was. Typical of me.
Today on the bus, i saw Mo Tucker. No, it wasn't actually her, it was the girlfriend of a friend i haven't seen in a few years. In fact, the girlfriend's the reason i haven't seen this person in years. I'd just had enough. From then on it seemed as if the day was filled with unmade-up women with undyed hair wearing flat comfortable shoes (thank you, Annalisa: sometimes i am just blind to certain things). No familiar faces during my lunchtime stroll -- a nigerian selling socks accosted me following me around for meters -- but later that day, who should show up at the office but Franci and Laura with their new puppy.
I go back tomorrow to finish the assignment.
Two days ago, i ran into an former AE student of mine, Marta. She was walking her dog (i'm assuming it was her German Shepard). She's a very pretty girl and seems to have become even prettier since i'd last seen her last year. The girl told me on the last day of classes last year she thought i didn't like her, that i have something against her. Which is completely untrue. In fact i was taken aback by her comment and to this day i have no idea why she thinks/thought that. I even remember complimenting her on her work. She actually showed a bit of talent.
She says she and Ilaria (another former student of mine) are taking a regione-sponsored class in "open-source graphics." "Open source? Like GIMP and Blender," i asked. I asked because italians are famous for adopting english words or phrases and tacking on a different definition. But she confirmed it was exactly what i thought. I asked how she was getting along with The GIMP and she politely answered just fine. I confessed i've never gotten along with The GIMP (for production purposes). We then said our goodbyes, quite stiffly.
Yesterday, while taking my lunchtime stroll, i ran into Marianna, a girl i'd met last year while she was working for the same Trasteverian production house i'm freelancing for these days. She used to speak english with me and spoke very well, sometimes not even revealing an italian accent. And she didn't speak to show off, which is a common defect here. She was always very sweet and was just as same yesterday. So, that was very pleasant! She was with two colleagues of hers; she's working at an advertising agency somewhere around there. Of course i didn't think to ask the name or where exactly it was. Typical of me.
Today on the bus, i saw Mo Tucker. No, it wasn't actually her, it was the girlfriend of a friend i haven't seen in a few years. In fact, the girlfriend's the reason i haven't seen this person in years. I'd just had enough. From then on it seemed as if the day was filled with unmade-up women with undyed hair wearing flat comfortable shoes (thank you, Annalisa: sometimes i am just blind to certain things). No familiar faces during my lunchtime stroll -- a nigerian selling socks accosted me following me around for meters -- but later that day, who should show up at the office but Franci and Laura with their new puppy.
I go back tomorrow to finish the assignment.
19 October 2009
Flatwounds are for pussies
I was stinkin' about some of my favorite guitar sounds...
Well, there's Ronnie Wood's Dan Armstrong through his Ampeg 4x10 (what is that, a Rat pedal?)...
Then, there's always John armed with his Casino through a Fender Twin...
Peace.
Well, there's Ronnie Wood's Dan Armstrong through his Ampeg 4x10 (what is that, a Rat pedal?)...
Then, there's always John armed with his Casino through a Fender Twin...
Peace.
17 October 2009
Where is my mind?
Jesus, it's been a while! What's been happening since i last reported in? Well, not much!
I played bartender for about a month. No, wait...that was in July....
Feex came and went. No, that was July/August...hmmmm.
Ah! I did The Perfect Bun's website.
I'm thinking of opening something. Something not graphic/design-related.
I worked on video for RAI Sport, BNL, Caccia e pesca, and Studio Universal.
And now i'm cleaning up and out my font collection of over ten years. And what timing, as i read that OSX 10.6 Snow Leopard is having major problems (as of this writing) with legacy PS Type1 fonts. That, plus the fact that the rewritten-from-scratch QuickTime X is as of yet little more than a movie player, guarantees that this time around i'll let the others be the penguins closest to the water.
And in more Macintosh news, i (certainly one of thousands) am trying to learn all there is about the iTunes LP format (.itlp). Effectively, it's just a HTML4 and javascript bundle, but it's heavy-duty javascript with calls to the iTunes app itself. Interesting. Hope it's not too out of my league.
Next week, i'll be working on Boing!
And now i'll leave you all with a photograph by Phoenix Sky Di Mauro...
I played bartender for about a month. No, wait...that was in July....
Feex came and went. No, that was July/August...hmmmm.
Ah! I did The Perfect Bun's website.
I'm thinking of opening something. Something not graphic/design-related.
I worked on video for RAI Sport, BNL, Caccia e pesca, and Studio Universal.
And now i'm cleaning up and out my font collection of over ten years. And what timing, as i read that OSX 10.6 Snow Leopard is having major problems (as of this writing) with legacy PS Type1 fonts. That, plus the fact that the rewritten-from-scratch QuickTime X is as of yet little more than a movie player, guarantees that this time around i'll let the others be the penguins closest to the water.
And in more Macintosh news, i (certainly one of thousands) am trying to learn all there is about the iTunes LP format (.itlp). Effectively, it's just a HTML4 and javascript bundle, but it's heavy-duty javascript with calls to the iTunes app itself. Interesting. Hope it's not too out of my league.
Next week, i'll be working on Boing!
And now i'll leave you all with a photograph by Phoenix Sky Di Mauro...
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