:: June 30, 2003
Either the most brilliant parody of wacky Christians since, well, Landover Baptist Church, or the wackiest wacky Christians ever. You decide! Their surreal Cafe Press store is just the icing on the cake. Via Reenhead. ::
:: June 26, 2003
Second in a series of romantic postcards bought in Venice, Italy in the blurry early 1990s. You must see it up close to fully appreciate it. ::
Just read this entry at Brad Zellar's Open All Night. I hope to incorporate any of these quips into my daily repetoire. ::
:: June 25, 2003
E-mail from J.R.
Fellow Citizens,
I know some of you are tired of what you might think is my chronic downing of the good old U.S. of A., so I thought maybe we could bond over some friendly recipe swapping, to eat for freedom.
I am excited to hear about any recipe ideas that you may have. My kitchen is clean and ready to bake against Terrorism.
Under God,
J.R. Cope, Nacogdoches, Texas. ::
Via Shelter: the Recent Past Preservation Network, whose mission is "to promote the preservation of buildings from the recent past and help others who are trying to do the same. Too often we lose important buildings that are less than fifty years old, buildings that are considered 'out of style,' or buildings that are declared 'non-contributing' to history at the civic, state, or national level. It is our goal to educate and inform the public and politicians about the value of structures from the midcentury and beyond."
Their National Windshield Survey page organizes buildings by type. Everything from residential cottages to stadiums is documented, with special attention to endangered structures and ongoing preservation projects. Who knows, maybe you can pick up a fly tiki-style house at rock-bottom prices, and preserve some history while you're at it. ::
:: June 24, 2003
American Splendor trailer, official site, and Harvey Pekar's weblog (via ToT). Also: Harvey Pekar's archive of articles written for the Austin Chronicle. When I worked there he called a lot, and the building-wide pages were often ignored by their recipients. I always wanted to pick up and talk to him, but never did. Regrets! ::
:: June 23, 2003
"In the first and arguably easiest event, the so-called mental athletes have 15 minutes to memorize 99 color head-and-shoulder photos of different people, each with a first and last name written below the picture. Afterwards, the contestants are given the 99 photos again (in random order, without the names), earning points for each first and last name correctly recalled."
The excellent Failure Magazine (yes, a magazine about failure) has an article about the 2003 USA Memory Championship (aka the Memoriad), which is not so much about failure but about success, but these amazing feats are tainted by a weird self-help infomercial undertone. ::
I heart kdunk's fotolog ::
A small collection of old cookbooks with some sample recipes at Girlygirl Clothing. Also, a history of aprons. ::
:: June 17, 2003
This is a real scan from a real beginning Irish language textbook. Well, I drew in the little squiggly lines to enhance the scene, but the implications of childhood alcoholism are 100% original. See the whole conversation (with translation) here. Ho ho! Those crazy Irish. They're all drunks! ::
:: June 15, 2003
[awkward pause]
So, how about them pop rockin' Russian lesbian teens? ::
:: June 13, 2003
During a little insomnia late last night I saw an episode of Extreme Homes on HGTV with a segment on Lustron houses, post-war manufactured houses made entirely out of steel. The exterior and interior walls were made of porcelain-enameled steel panels, making for easy upkeep. You couldn't paint, but the homes came in cool mid-century pastels like surf blue and maize yellow and salmon. Wall decorations had to be hung with magnets. Much of the furniture and appliances were built in, like a dishwasher that converted into a clothes washer.
The Lustron Corporation experienced a rapid demise, but due to their durability, many of their houses remain today -- 35 of them in Lombard, Illinois alone. Naturally there are plenty of fan sites and news stories on the web; there is even a documentary on them. If you live in or near the midwest, there may be a Lustron house near you to examine up-close.
Shelter, a fascinating weblog "document[ing] a personal journey from chronic illness, confinement, and the threat of death in the polluted environment of a decrepit American East Coast to the sanctuary of a simple and practical non-toxic home," has a story on the Lustron from a unique perspective that concludes: "The homes are usually destroyed more often then they are sold, their oddness making them difficult to sell. Real estate agents and land developers are typically ignorant of their history or collectors value -- though that may be changing rapidly." ::
:: June 9, 2003
Translation: You must now be very brave! ::
:: June 5, 2003
I rarely take a political stance on the Excitement Machine, but the events of the last few days have really got me down. So I decided to do something about it: I opened a Pixeltees shop and created this T-shirt. Please buy one and wear it proudly. Even if you don't agree, buy one and wear it ironically, like you did with Winona. Maybe just maybe Martha will get our message and know that the world isn't just one big dripping nasty ball of schadenfreude.
(P.S. for those who saw the minimalist shirt yesterday, well, I've learned more about how to make a Pixeltees shirt, and I think Martha would like this one better.) ::
:: June 4, 2003
Italian Lovers Sharing Coca-Cola, one of a series of postcards bought in Venice, Italy in 1993
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:: June 3, 2003
By the Way magazine is dedicated to roadside America, mostly diners. They have a great article about downtown L.A.'s Clifton's Cafeteria, which, as I've noted before, is one of the most magical places on earth. Also, Laughing Squid has some nice pictures of a Clifton's outing. ::
(Click for generously-sized version)
I have come across a box of weird stuff that I had forgotten about. I was collecting this stuff with the intent of displaying it on the web someday. It looks like that day has come. Rejoice, for the Picture Dump is Resurrected. ::
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