Archive for February, 2005
Movie Time
February 24th, 2005 cata-wha?
Google saves us from the crappy Douglas Theatres Website, with its new movie search feature. No listings for the Ross, or the Grand, yet. I would imagine they are on the way, though. Extra handy with 1-5 star ratings compiled from all over and links to the IMDB listing for each movie.
Punk Turns 30
February 24th, 2005 cata-wha?
Theresa Kereakes is a photographer who took photos of the emerging punk scene in LA in the 70’s, and from the looks of it she is still taking great photos.
Found in here links: Jenny Lens Punk Archive, Photos and Stories, 1976-1980 Home. To investigate further…
As Seen on the Daily Show
February 22nd, 2005 cata-wha?
Worst TV Clips of the Week, brought to you by the oh-so wholesome Parents Television Council.
beep beep
February 20th, 2005 cata-wha?
Here is my enthusiastic endorsement of Beep Beep - a fine band from Omaha.
They played last night here in lincoln, and it was one of the better performances I have seen for some time. They are quirky, yet agressive. Like a hyper-sexed Gang Of Four. Pics by Kevin Seven.
cool phone
February 18th, 2005 cata-wha?
Rivals that Motorolla Razor phone.
Product Site.
Me? I am blissfully cel free.
(Via Josh Rubin: Cool Hunting.)
Waxing on Sleater-Kinney
February 17th, 2005 cata-wha?
Andy Baio’s take ( “your biggest fans are pirating it because there’s no legal alternative” ) on Sleater-Kinney’s request that their fans not download their new album kind of misses the point. It isn’t that there is no legal alternative - it’s that it hasn’t been released yet! I am sure there will be legal digital distribution options when the record is released on May 24th.
Do fans have the right to have pre-release access, then?
A label needs to coordinate for months to pull together a perfect storm of press, publicity, advertising, tour schedules and more. So, I sympathize with the band, having run an indie label for years, and having seen the releases show up on file trading networks. I think the band poses a valid point about wanting to control how their art is distributed.
I think they have a right to be very frustrated with the fact that the record was leaked, though a bit naive to think that it wouldn’t be. They sound a little scared (and I don’t blame them), but I would be surprised if this would impact their livelihood.
Take the recent Bright Eyes records. They were leaked two or three months ahead of release as well. What happened? They debuted at #10 and #15
on the Billboard charts. Great Destroyer, by Low, was also leaked well in advance, and seems to be doing very well, too. Labels are going to have to come up with a creative solution to this problem - and not the superglued mini-disk option (who pulled that bonehead idea?).
I really don’t know if leaked records hurt or help the artist or label any more than good or bad advance press you have to admit, it is a pain in the ass.
Miss McDonald
February 17th, 2005 cata-wha?
After a while, media/web/information overload makes you immune to the new things you stumble across on the web. Politics overload. War overload. Pop culture overload. News overload. Music overload. I like overload. Too much can be a good thing.
And the times when all you can say is, “Wha?” become fewer and further between. I present you a recent “Wha?”:
A Day In The Life of Miss McDonald
(Via kottke, who thinks she is “slightly sexy”.)
my sick little girl.
February 17th, 2005 cata-wha?
the last few weeks have been rough.
It all started when my daughter came down with what seemed to be a textbook flu case. All the regular symptoms. Lots of waking up in the middle of the night turned into lots and LOTS of waking up in the middle of the night. An Inconsolable little girl, unable to tell us what was bothering her. Sometimes she could get back to sleep for a few hours. Othertimes, she would be awake in 20 minutes - just as we would be drifting to sleep.
After two visits to the doctor we thought we were dealing with a flu, or flu-like virus. Stella dealt with the blood draws bravely, and her waiting-room manners impeccable. Good kid.
She refused to eat. It seemed like she ate a handful of food that first week, and dehydration was the main concern. We got a special Care Bear cup with a big straw and kept her pumped full of pedialite by setting goals - “Ok! Drink down to the Care’Bear’s foot!”
Still, not a whole lot of sleep for anyone in the house.
Then came the spots. Little red dots on her legs, and ankles. A phone call to the doctor didn’t cause any alarm. They were probably just a rash caused by the virus. The little spots grew into patches onher ankles, and behind her knee.
And then she seemed to have a sprained ankle. Poor kid wasn’t catching a break. We tried to catch naps in the day.
On our third trip to the doctor’s in two weeks, the spots got a lot of attention, and warrented a refferal to another doctor.
Diagnosis: Henoch-Schönlein Purpura, a not-too-common blood disease which primarily affects children. It all fit: The lack of appetite, the spots, and the ankle - not sprained, but a rhuemtoid arthritis. There is no specific treatment, it is all supposed to go away. The main concern is watching her kidney functions. Apparently, HSP can cause the kidneys to get sludged up (non-medical term). Up to 1% of have kidney failure - so it is a very real concern.
Last weekend, we saw a marked improvement. She was eating like a horse, playing, laughing, dancing. We had our girl back.
The doctor called to schedule a follow-up yesterday, and last night stella was up complaing about her stomach. And again tonight, she was up crying and unable to tell us what was bothering her.
And now I can’t sleep. And I am trying to beat back the “what if” scenarios. Chances are that she’ll sail through this without any major problems. Typing it out helps my mind from wandering too far away, and maybe I will actually get some REM sleep yet tonight.
Manuscript Unfurled.
February 16th, 2005 cata-wha?
Kerouac’s ‘On the Road’ Manuscript Unfurled: “For the first time, the 120-foot-long scroll manuscript for Jack Kerouac’s On the Road has gone on display unrolled. The giant scroll can be seen from end to end at the University of Iowa Museum of Art — though its ending is missing, reportedly chewed by a dog.”
Chewed by a dog.
Amazing.
I love stuff like this. Artifacts. History, and the back stories. Important art works or just random stuff. I have years of my own life stashed away in boxes, loosely filed : photos, zines, skateboarding, music, record label, art. I just got a film scanner off Ebay, so it will be fun going through the archives and posting stuff.
But, who cares about 15 year old skate photos, punk band flyers, or art-student photography? Well, I do, because it is mine. Maybe I will be able to conjure up the reason I couldn’t throw the stuff away. (My wife has been waiting for that answer for many years.)
More importantly, it is time to be on the making side of creativity again. I need to keep reminding myself that.
