No one I think is in my tree, I mean it must be high or low. That is you can’t you know tune in but it’s all right, that is I think it’s not too bad

2046

i finally saw 2046. any attempt at summarizing it would be futile, so here are some observations...

it is incredibly moving and evocative

it makes the most tocuhing use of music of any film of recent memory

it is simply a beautiful film to watch - and i don't simply mean because of the beautiful actresses - which includes zhang ziyi - virtually every frame of the film could be printed and hung on the wall

it is full of romance, melancholy and nostalgia

this is as good of an example of film as art as i can think of...it is truly the film as a whole which makes the impact, as opposed to one certain aspect - the narrative, the acting, etc...

of course, as you might figure, a movie this good and non-cliched would never make much of a splash in the USA - either in terms of box office (did it even play in theaters here - certainly not here in the hinterlands) or awards (heck, i'm not a biog oscars fan, but watch it and tell me how it couldn't be nominated for SOMETHING!!!)

thanks to sharon, through whom, if memnory serves, i became aware of the wonderful films of wong kar wai

what i like...

special art edition....

here are some links of art i like

charles harper - i read about him in dwell magazine and there is precious little on the internet about him - i love his stylized, abstracted pictures of birds, bugs, etc... i suppose in my own photos i try to do a similar thing (with far less success than a master like harper) take a look at nature from a different perspective... i love his quote on dwell magazine - "nature did it better. i couldn't try to compete." his abstractions though help us see nature, as well as being beautiful creations in their own right...

Páll Stefánsson - i love this landscape - it's hard to describe - there are few identifiable features - but the color tones and the composition is wonderful...i like to take pictures of things where the point isn't to take a picture of the thing, but to see the colors lines, etc...if that makes any sense... - some other photos of his can be found, at least for now, here...

i love georgia o'keeffe, and i'd be lying if my close ups of flowers aren't imitating her work...her work has shown me the beauty of what is there, but largely unseen cause we ignore it...

last, but not least, gina's ceramics, don't know anything about ceramics, yet love all the different tones and glazes, from the earthy to the glassy (glass-like?) - to the quasi-metallic...gina forgive me, perhaps you can post the proper descriptions. what i like about her work is that it brings a sense of care, deliberation and beauty to everyday things... i know i rattle on endlessly about her noodle bowls, but truly, compare eating from them as opposed to eating out of a carryout container...in today's world the focus is so much on convenience and hurry-up and the expense of quality, that her beautiful, functional things are an invitation to slow down and appreciate the moment and its beauty...

i am on...

SPRING BREAK!!!

professional blogs...

i am now keeping two blogs in a professional context - and in collaboration with some of my colleagues...
LCCC CTE Blog
LCCC Business Division Blog

Stop in if you are interested in education, business, technology, or just want to see how differently i am in a professional context - on these blogs, i use *gasp* upper case letters and actual punctuation...

spring?

branches

many little birds

a bit odd, perhaps, but very cool....

british artist michael forbes' site

little bird

little birds

wow...

wow!

indy jazz

it seems like many outstanding, progressive jazz artists have gone the "indy" route, eschewing regular record labels for co-ops, or for their own labels...a few come to mind...dave douglas, who created greenleaf records, the folks at artist share and dave holland's dare2 records

it's a sad fact that record companies care little about the music they sell - they are only interested in profits - such is the nature of "the man" and rather than moaning about it, these artists are doing something about it. it allows artists to have more control and i hope, a larger piece of the pie. for a listener, many of these offer listeners subscriptions or sponsorships, so we can put our money where our mouths are support the artists we love in a very tangible way, and receive some perks - and achieve a greater connection with some great musicians...

i wish all the above - and anyone else involved in such endeavors the best in sticking it to the man....

if you are aware of similar projects, in jazz or other styles of music, let me know...

what i like...

the look for less, taking pictures of my white cat (as opposed to the cat herself), dave douglas, marvin gaye's got to give it up (which i couldn't stand when it was first out - silly boy...), my panini grill, yellow tail wine, not watching the oscars, rod stewart - about 35 years ago, or so, wallace and gromit's were-bunny movie, lindsey jacobellis - who blew a gold medal, but at least had fun doing it, ry cooder's chicken skin music...

et tu?