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weekly rounds

Monday, July 26th, 2010
Matt Wallace and Mur Lafferty, cc by-nc-sa image from nlowell on Flickr

Matt Wallace and Mur Lafferty, cc by-nc-sa image from nlowell on Flickr

  • That shift in the universe you felt this past weekend? Yup. That was reality taking a moment to revere the birth-anniversaries of Matt and Mur, as is only right and proper.
  • Even though Balticon feels like it ended only a few days ago, ReConStruction and Aussiecon 4 loom ever closer. I must prepare. You may tremble if you choose… it is recommended.

Posted in Conventions, Friends and Family, Libations | No Comments »

fortnightly rounds

Monday, May 24th, 2010
Janet Biggs: Nobody Rides for Free, via Janet Biggs on Facebook

Janet Biggs: Nobody Rides for Free, via Janet Biggs on Facebook

  • Laura and I had the chance to meet up with my never-before-met cousin Bob and his wife Janet last weekend, among other Cmar relations. Janet has a damn cool solo video and photography exhibit at Connor Contemporary Art in Washington DC entitled Nobody Rides For Free. From the announcement:

    Conner Contemporary Art is pleased to announce Janet Biggs’ first solo exhibition with the gallery, Nobody Rides for Free.

    In new video and photographs, Biggs delves into the desire to explore remote lands. To create this work, the artist embarked on an expedition in the high Arctic, traveling aboard an ice-class, 2-masted schooner, built in 1910. During the voyage, Biggs filmed Fade to White, focusing on a crew member as he navigated the ship through iceberg filled seas, and paddled a kayak past glacier walls and polar bears.

    As she photographed the explorer, Biggs tested her own will and endurance. The visual tension of her uncompromising imagery bespeaks their mutual struggle to maintain balance and purpose. Yet, the video also reveals the use of extensive rigging, exposing the myth of the solitary white male explorer. Biggs explains, “The desire to hold onto the notion of the ‘great white north’ as a blank space awaiting interpretation only reinforces the idea of the colonial polar hero. The ‘virgin’ north has now been mapped, surveyed, and mined, but increased knowledge has not replaced endless fantasies of discovery.”

    Loss and change are implicit in the video’s title, Fade to White, which refers to an editing technique used to evoke death or transcendence. Biggs integrated her Arctic imagery with sound and video footage of counter tenor John Kelly, whose age, androgyny, and mournful voice parallel the vanishing Arctic landscape and signal the waning of male dominance.

    Vanishing Point, the artist’s recent video featuring biker Leslie Porterfield and the Harlem Addicts Rehabilitation Center Choir, will be on view in the media room.

    The exhibit will run through July 30, so if you are in the DC area, be sure to swing by Connor and check it out.

  • Balticon approacheth this weekend. You have been warned. And will likely be warned again in more detail, within the next couple of days.
  • Over on the GLF, I note two soon-to-open beer establishments in the area – the Biergarten Haus, DC’s first traditional German beer garden, and De Kleine Duivel, a “classic Belgian brasseire” in Baltimore.

    • Posted in Cmar, Conventions, Friends and Family, Libations | No Comments »

    Laura @ the San Diego Science Festival

    Wednesday, March 24th, 2010

    San Diego Science Festival 2010

    The San Diego Science Festival is going on as I type this, and will be bringing the awesome with SCIENCE all this week. A bit of context from their site:

    The San Diego Science Festival strives to create exciting and interactive experiences that showcase the remarkable science of greater San Diego, a community recognized as one of the Nation’s scientific leaders. Our wide variety of programs and events inspire all ages, with a special focus on building a pipeline of future scientists and STEM thought-leaders.

    The University of California, San Diego is lead organizer for the second annual San Diego Science Festival (www.sdsciencefestival.com), a week of community events designed to focus awareness on the importance of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. This year’s Festival will take place March 20-27, culminating in a Science EXPO Day at PETCO Park on Saturday, March 27.

    The Festival’s EXPO Day is planned to inspire San Diego’s youth to pursue science-oriented education and careers. Parents and families are encouraged to attend, as are all members of the San Diego community. With the theme of “Excite Your Mind,” EXPO events will include over 150 hands-on science exhibits for attendees of all ages, a Rubik’s Cube Speed Tournament involving 45 local school teams, a science-inspired art show and even the dissection of real brain specimens. Last year, over 50,000 people took part in the San Diego Science Festival EXPO Day activities alone.

    Amidst the amazing number of events going on, I am vastly tickled that Laura has been invited as a guest to host the Star Party tomorrow night! Behold:

    sdsf_starparty

    In addition to hosting the Star Party (including a discussion of the latest news about the James Webb Space Telescope) tomorrow, Laura will also be speaking about Citizen Science at the massive Expo Day on Saturday. For details about these and all the other excellent activities, check out their site, hit them up on the Facebook, and follow them on Twitter. Most importantly, if you are in the area, stop by and bask in the radiant beauty of SCIENCE.

    Posted in Friends and Family, Science | 2 Comments »

    weekly rounds

    Monday, February 1st, 2010
    • I think Laura said it best:

      Hello Feb 1! Can I pretend that this is the start of 2010 and that January didn’t happen?

      And so I shall leave it at that.

    • Apple also happened to announce a shiny new thing this past week. Ken encapsulates exactly why I’d want one, while Chris examines why the iPad (and, to a lesser extent, the entire Apple product line) are less “computers” and more “appliances”… and why that may be a bad thing.

    Posted in Blogs, Books, Friends and Family, Wisdom | 1 Comment »

    weekly rounds

    Sunday, January 17th, 2010
    • At the risk of inducing a recursive weekly roundup loop, it seems that Overlords Johnson and Miller are starting up a Friday Minion Roundup feature on the retooled Secret Lair site. Everyone involved is stupefyingly talented, which makes this an imperative thing for you to check out.
    • Jim has threatened to hit us with a weekly dose of critical gaming links on The Vintage Gamer, and he is making good on said threat. The only thing more interesting and awesome than the information he’s corralling together is Jim himself (which sets said bar orbitally high), so I command you to go and read.

    Tags:
    Posted in Friends and Family, Gaming, Libations, Podcasts | No Comments »

    Cmar is also… Croatian Metal and Rock

    Tuesday, January 12th, 2010

    In which I will continue to note all things “cmar”…

    The website Cmar-net.org, or Croatian Metal And Rock, has been serving the undoubtedly vast Croatian metal community since 1999. While much of it is in Croatian, the site is intuitively navigable and there are English forums, for those interested in poking about. While I can’t say this is a prime resource for my musical needs, the trifecta of 1) the excellent name, 2) shout out to my European ancestry, and 3) addressing one of my favorite auditory genres makes this site a win.

    That, and any place that can advertise death metal, dance parties, and Extreme on the same tour page without any irony whatsoever requires my complete respect.

    Previously:

    Tags:
    Posted in Friends and Family, Music | No Comments »

    El Cmar, technico

    Monday, January 11th, 2010

    Last week I directed you to check out Matt’s comments on present day gladiators. The entire thing is resonant for me (for particular reasons I have yet to divulge), and also an excellent starting point for some fascinating sociological and philosophical commentary on us as a species.

    On a vaguely related note, today I stumbled across this video from independent pro wresting organization Next Era Wrestling, circa 2005. What it contains is a triple threat match in which one of the participants is clearly my luchador alter ego, El Cmar. The match is bad, and the videography is worse, but it’s worth watching at least the first few minutes to see El Cmar in all of his resplendent glory – in this case, a goofy white guy billed as being from Mexico wearing a football uniform with a luchador-style mask who’s ring entrance music is the “come on down!” tune from the Price Is Right.

    Research indicates that El Cmar was active in at least two indy wrestling promotions during 2005, but is otherwise a mystery. While he is likely the masked identity of another wrestler who has (one can hope) moved on to bigger and better things, I would like to believe that El Cmar has crossed back south into Mexico, where he is giving syphilitic rudos hell to this very day.

    Tags: ,
    Posted in Friends and Family | 1 Comment »

    weekly rounds

    Monday, January 11th, 2010
    • Natalie, wife of Tee, tragically and unexpectedly died this week at far too young of an age. Laura and I have had the privilege of counting them as friends for nearly a decade, and to say that Nat will be missed is an great understatement. A memorial site, including information about a trust fund and auction set up to benefit their young daughter “Sonic Boom,” can be found here.

    Posted in Friends and Family, Libations | No Comments »

    weekly rounds

    Sunday, December 20th, 2009
    • Much like Chris and Jared, I’ve set up my own Tumblr site as a repository for interesting bits that I come across in my online travels. Some will be used for plans nefarious, and some will be forgotten… but all will be marked as worthy of attention.

    Posted in Friends and Family, Libations, Medical | No Comments »

    ten years ago…

    Friday, December 18th, 2009

    …Laura and I were doing this, scant hours after being married:

    the Moon Ranger and the Plague Doctor united in matrimony, photo by Janine Spang

    the Moon Ranger and the Plague Doctor united in matrimony, photo by Janine Spang

    Let the world know that she is a brilliant Ranger of Joy and Win, and the past 10 years have been simply amazing. I consider myself uniquely fortunate to be her partner in life, and can only hope to update this post for many decades to come.

    I am a lucky, lucky man.

    Posted in Friends and Family | 9 Comments »

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