Digital Vinyl

Saddle Creek and Merge records (home of some of the best indie rock going today) are offering free MP3 downloads of any albums that their customers buy on vinyl. It is refreshing to see an idea like this when all we see from the majors are lawsuits and threats to the customers. The indie's realize that it is best to keep your customer happy and offer them what they want.

If history has taught us anything it's that you can't win a battle against technology. Things change and if you are in business you must be able to adapt to new changes as they come along or you will be ruined. There was a time when record companies (such as Brunswick) stamped "Not for radio play" on their records because they feared it would harm sheet music sales. How's the sheet music industry doing these days?

The other day I watched a DVD and the first thing on it was a big warning saying that buying pirated DVD's was the same as stealing. But they didn't seem to do anything when this day was clearly coming. I remember saying just as music downloads were really starting to take off (the late 90's) that it will be very soon when the same thing is happening with movies. I think the next 10 years will show a major shift in companies that have technological foresight vs. the ones who have been doing things the same way for decades. The world is a very different place than it was even 10 years ago. With a home computer and few extras people can record their own albums and edit their own movies and the quality is damn good. Plus with the internet connecting people like never before, modern word of mouth spreads like wild fire.

Golf shoes and the path to the Lord.

I was in the Goodwill today as I often am and just as I was about to leave an older woman sitting on a chair trying on shoes says to me "Golf shoes are really comfortable" she proceeds to take off a shoe and says to me look at all the padding in this thing. I just smile and say "nice" she goes on to say that she walks a lot and they are the most comfortable shoes. I thought our conversation was over there but no there was more. Just as I was stepping to leave she asks "Do you have any New Years resolutions?" At this point I figure she may just want someone to talk to so I'll play along. I say I do not. She says her New Years resolution is the Learn the Language of Love. I'm thinking wow this is becoming quite an interesting dialog. She says "Feeling love is different than knowing the language and being able to communicate it to others also that her friend has a cassette titled the language of love but that you probably need a video to learn it". She also says I can have that resolution and proceeds to try to think of some others I can have. I half wished that I had just said I wanted to start eating healthier. She says her last years resolution was Wisdom and she goes on to stumble over a bible verse to do with Solomon. At this point I knew where the conversation was heading, the next question was.... "Are you Christian?". I never really know how to answer these questions. I pause and say "No I'm nothing, I was raised with nothing". She mishears me and asks "You're Muslim?" I say "No I'm nothing I don't follow any religion". She goes on to tell me about the 2 different churches that she goes to and that I should come by. She then asks where I grew up and I say "On the West Side" she says she did too and tells me the street she grew up on and surprisingly I grew up on the street right next to her's. I tell her this and she says "oh yeah, that new street" I found this humorous because the house I grew up in is at least 50 years old. The conversation went on a bit longer and she dropped the church thing a few more times. Saying it must be hard to step into a church if your not part of one but she said "The door swings both ways". I'm not exactly sure what that means does that mean that its easy to walk into a church but then if you don't like what's going on inside its just as easy to get the hell out of there. At this point I figured I had better get out of there before the "faith" questions become more pressing. I told her I had to get going so she shook my hand and told me here name and again said that I should come to the church on Sunday. I said "Maybe I will" but doesn't maybe mean no the majority of the time. I think it does.

King Kong (the new one and the old one)

I should state a few things off the bat for those of you who don't know me or haven't read all the posts on this site.

I was not a very big fan of the Lord of the Rings movies.They were ok but I certainly wasn't blown away by them and I certainly don't think any of them should be in the top 25 movies of all time

I am also not a very big fan of CGI For the most part scenery looks ok these days but I really dislike it when characters and "living things" are computer generated.

Before watching the new King Kong I decided to watch the original. As we all know the original is regarded as one of the greatest films in history, but I have to say that it really doesn't stand the test of time. I realize that I watched it for the first time in 2005 (72 years after it was made). But this brings me to an idea that my brother introduced me to. For films there are "classics" and "timeless classics". King Kong is certainly a classic (the film was revolutionary in its day) but it isn't a timeless classic. I honestly found parts of it extremely hard to get through. In comparison there are many films from the same period that are still amazing and relevant today. But that's an argument for another time.

The 2005 remake was pretty good. It was nice to see Jackson put his own spin on the original he even added a few clever elements to the script in reference to the original. King Kong actually looks O.K. for a character created with CGI, much better than Golem or anything from Star Wars parts 1-3. There are however a few things that I take issue with.
* The CGI dinosaurs look like a bag of shit, they look no better than the ones in Jurrassic park which was made in 1993.
* Jack Black although a great comedy actor is not very good in a serious role (at least not this one).
* I'm no animal expert but I don't think a giant gorilla would ever stand a chance in a fight against 3 Tyrannosaurus Rex's no matter how "in love" he was.
*I was kind of annoyed by the way that Ann Darrow "fell" for King Kong and had genuine feelings for him. By Contrast it was almost comical that in the original she felt nothing for him and didn't even care when he was killed. But I guess those were the days before the idea of Stockholm syndrome was popularized.

There is a scene in the new one that takes place in a cavern with a bunch of giant bugs and it is one of the creepiest things I've seen in a film in a long time.

Apparently the original King Kong is Peter Jackson's favorite movie of all time and it is what inspired him to get into film making. I like to think that Jackson was driven to make this film because he considers himself to be the King Kong character. If the ladies could only see past his simian appearance they would actually love him.

Tiger in pictures

Over the holidays (on Christmas day to be exact) My families cat "Tiger" died. He was between 12 and 15 (we arent exactly sure). He was a good cat so I dug up a few photos.

a couple of norms and a couple of double exposures.

Worst Candy Bars Ever

I just saw "The Chronicles of Narnia" and when the one kid first meets the Ice queen she says she can make him anything in the world he wants to eat. For some bizarre reason he chooses a big plate of turkish delight. That vile red tastebud poison that fills a Big Turk bar.


Lets face it a Sweet Marie bar is nothing more than the poor mans Oh Henry bar.


Bounty is truly one of the worst. It has spawned my hatred for coconut.


I bought a burnt almond on a whim because it was the only bar in the cadbury line that I hadn't tried. I was truly disappointed. I should have expected a bar with the word "burnt" in the title to be terrible.


This piece of crap doesn't even have chocolate in it. Molasses and peanuts. Its the candy bar that looks the same pre and post digestion.


I've actually never had one of these but personally I wont eat something with a name like that.

Baywatch Memories

Found this pic on awfulplasticsurgery.com. Remember that kid who played Hasselhoff's son Hobie on Batwatch? Well this is him now. I find it strange that he's only 25 yet he looks like a washed up 45 year old european pop star.

When bodies become weather

I've been neglecting writing and updating this site. This is not a conscious decision but for some reason the winter leaves me uninspired. I suppose being surrounded by death doesn't help.

The plants are dead, there are no animals in sight and the snow absorbs a lot of sound, so even sound seems to die a little.

The snow really does make me think about mortality. All that snow out there was once (part of) a person. Humans are made up of about 60% water. Science teaches us that matter cannot be created or destroyed so all that water has been on this earth (in one form or another) since the beginning of time. I doubt that any water on the planet hasn't been through at least one person. I feel the same way when I see a skeleton on display somewhere. Its strange to think that that was once a person who lived a life and did day to day things and probably had an equally complex human experience as anyone living now.

Its not that death really scares me or anything. I guess being surrounded by snow just makes me think that one day this vessel of mine will also be lying in a pile outdoors as the object of many peoples contempt.

Redneck Recipes

I truly want to start a website devoted to the most diabolically unhealthy and trashy recipes known to man. Don't get me wrong I like quality food. I worked for several years in the food industry and made my fair share of fancy shit. But I've always been intrigued by the dark side of food. I don't even necessarily want to eat it I just like coming up with the ideas. You may remember my idea for KFP or Kentucky Fried Pizza. Well here are some others.


shepherds Pie Mark II or Poutine Extreme
This one is fairly simple you make up the mix for shepherds pie (which is basically ground beef, onions, corn, carrots etc.) but instead of topping it with mashed potatoes you top it with French fries (which have been deep fried first) then top with cheese and gravy.


Wendy's Triple Burger Cubed Plus One or the Beef Highrise
With 4200 calories, 190 g of fat, 9000 mg of sodium this burger is sure to become a favorite. You actually don't have to wait until it is released you can build your own by buying 10 classic singles. (throw all of the veg except for 1 serving but save the mayo).


Subway's All Monsters Attack Sub or Pig vs. Cow vs. Chicken vs. Turkey vs. Fish vs. Crab vs. Lobster vs. Octopus vs. Your bowels
In some places you can just ask for the all monsters attack sub but some places are out of the loop so you may have to explain. Cold cut combo asst. meat, turkey, ham, bacon, chicken, steak on white with double cheese and mayo plus whatever sauces you fancy the whole sub is then rolled up in a wrap with tuna and seafood salad in between.






Hot Dog wrapped in Cinnamon Bun
Do yourself a favor and get a package of Pillsbury cinnamon buns and package of hotdogs and make up these treats. Is it dinner? Is it dessert? Is it delicious? The answer to all three is up to you














Kraft Dinner
Instructions on box.











more to come...

tags: food,recipes, redneck,

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Wizard of Oz What Character are You?

Somewhat related to my last entry, this is also about stuff in movies that is beneath the surface. I met someone quite a while ago who had a theory that everyone on earth's personality is represented by a character from the Wizard of Oz.

Its really quite simple.
If you are a male you are either:
The Cowardly lion (you need courage ie you're a pussy)
The Scarecrow (you need a brain ie you're an idiot)
The Tin Man (you need a heart ie your are a cruel asshole)
Toto (you blindly follow around a woman ie you need your own personality)

If you are a female you are either:
Dorothy (you are naive and lost)
The Wicked Witch (You are a cruel and heartless bitch)
The Good Witch (You are pretty much perfect)

The Wizard represents any authority figure and that they are basically just phonies hiding behind smoke and mirrors. The munchkins don't come into the equation.

An over simplification? Possibly but its definitely something to think about.

tags: movies, wizard of oz, ideas,

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Fraught with Racism and offensive content)

I just watched Charlie and the Chocolate factory and I noticed some things that I certainly don't remember from the 1970s version. I have never read the book so I don't how much of this stuff is actually in it. I should add that this write up is filled with spoilers.

Lets start with a few little things.

Early on in the film a story is told about how Willy Wonka goes to India to build a palace made completely out of Chocolate for an Indian Prince. Well it gets really hot and the palace starts to melt and the first drop of melted chocolate lands directly on the Indians forehead. I think the stereotype implications are clear.

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After the golden ticket contest is announced. We are shown frenzied scenes from all over the globe. The most poignant is a market in Marrakesh Morocco where people are exchanging live animals for chocolate bars. They do use money in Morocco.

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This one isn't race related but in my opinion walking a controversial line. The fourth winner of a golden ticket is Mike Teavee. Now look at this kid he is angry, playing violent video games, yelling at the TV ,wearing camo pants and a shirt with a skull and a bloody bullet hole on it. Out of all the places in the world the chose Denver Colorado to be this kids home. Denver is right next to Columbine where of course the infamous school shootings took place.

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Now we get to the big issues of the whole movie. The Chocolate Factory.
Charlies Grandfather used to work at the chocolate factory before Wonka "closed" it. Did he get a pension? No he sleeps in a bed with 3 other people and lives in a house that has 7 people in it that is dilapidated beyond all belief.

But Wonka didn't really close the factory he just needed to find cheaper labor.
When the "Oompa Loompas" are first spotted in the factory. Wonka says that they are from Oompa land. Mike's Father says "there's no such place I'm a geography teacher". Wonka quickly snaps "then you'll know all about it and what a horrible place it is". Wonka tries to gloss over the fact that he invented the whole "Oompa Loompa" story and has uprooted these people from their homeland (claiming it was for their own good isn't that a common trait of slave drivers.)

Wonka claims that the "Oompas" will do anything for Cocoa beans (its all they want). So he gets them to live in his factory and pays them in cocoa beans. It is mentioned early on by Charlie's grandmother that no one is ever seen leaving the factory which by the way is surrounded by enormous iron gates.

By all indications the so called "Oompa Loompa's" are in fact African Pygmies. The term pygmy (from Greek pygmaios, "fist sized", a kind of dwarf in Greek mythology) can refer to any human or animal of unusually small size. This is evident by their small size and the fact that Wonka says he found them in the thick Jungle.

Additionally it is clear that Wonka doesn't even regard them as real people. After he is done explaining that the "Oompa Loompas" do all the work in the factory he catches the fat kid eating out of the river of chocolate and says "Hey little boy my chocolate must be untouched by human hands". Well we know that the factory workers must handle the chocolate. He's basically saying they aren't human. Also from the film making stand point making all of the "Oompa Loompa's" look exactly the same is in effect an attempt to dehumanize them by basically saying that they don't have individual identities and are nothing more than animals.

This shot of the slave ship is also very telling. It makes me wonder if the term "chocolate factory" refers to what the factory produces or the colour of the workers skin.

One last thing to add. They say that the golden tickets are hidden in countries all over the world yet the five winning kids all happen to be white.

tags: movies,racism, film,

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