Hi, Small Pictures is a video blog. Please note: I'm pretty sure that you need to download the latest version of Flash in order to see the movies on this page. It only takes a minute and you do not have to reboot. Unless otherwise noted, all movies are silent and worksafe.
1. I recently discovered that with the aid of a plush animal or puppet as a prop campanion, that I would be theoretically willing to do a routine on stage. This realization came about after a discussion of some of the extended scenes of For Your Consideration in which Nina Conti does her routine with a monkey puppet. For the record, I'm really against monkeys but Nina Conti is awesome. So awesome, in fact, that I think her little monkey is actually very cute. Please note: I would not do ventriloquism because I don't have the skills or "skilz" if you will. I could probably come up with a character and then I would try to interact with them though. If you haven't figured this out already, it would be pretty lame but the point is that even though I am a shy person, I think this sounds like a funny thing to do. I would rather do stand up than some stinky routine with a puppet but I think my skills (and lack there of) are probably better suited for ridiculous interactions rather than monologues and the like.
2. I am totally freaked out by the following photograph:
The photo is a still from the new film version (2007) of the Broadway version (2002) of Hairspray (which is a version of the original film from 1988, mind you). It depicts John Travolta as Edna Turnblad and Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad. It makes me want to stab myself.
3. I can't hold it in any longer: I am totally against Evite. I don't necessarily fault anyone for using this service. And I certainly like being invited to events. But, like many things in society, it's the system that sucks. If I was visiting Earth from outer space and I figured out how Evite works and what it is for, I would get the impression that everyone who uses it is a total control freak jerk that needs to know every little detail anonymously about my guests. The reason why Evite gives us this impression, I suspect, is that SOME people would like to know the number of attendees and WHY the HELL they aren't coming and everything. But most people probably do not feel this way and they just like Evite because it streamlines the whole process. It just sucks, I tell you. Not all online interaction is substitutive of real interaction (and lord knows that there's enough hysteria about this already) but I think that this is a fairly good example of it, actually. I think it plays a substitutive role in social interaction in that it replaces formerly totally fun, soulful aspects of party inviting with excrutiatingly boring typing, browser refreshing, and logging in as one's self. I'm nostalgic. Sue me.
This may be my strangest post. The other day I had this odd histamine situation where I was sneezing, had a runny nose, and my eyes watered for no apparent reason. I took some Benadril and then used a neti cleansing pot. I was cured! Anyway, I thought this a good time to finally come through on my promise to include something with the neti. I blocked myself out the best I could.
Here is Blueberry, one of the neighborhood cats. I realize that there are many social risks that I take when I admit to you that I really like this cat. I don't live alone and I don't own any cats. But, like most cats, she's not just some random animal that I have chosen to like. There are varying characteristics that I find particularly "cute" about her, if you will. But I will not go into them here. Because I AM NOT A CRAZY PERSON. She's not even that special. But, let it be known that she does have a white spot at the end of her tail, she has blue eyes, and she responds to her name. I think these are objectively good traits that just about anyone would think attractive in a cat. Thus, this still makes me 100% sane. And she also has a white belly. And she rolls around in the dirt sometimes. Okay, see? That's it.
Another topic I would like to address is Asia Cafe on Franklin Street. I visit this establishment at least once a month for lunch. Sometimes once a week. I find it is particularly fascinating for a few different reasons. First, the food is not very good. I think they have specials, sometimes, on the weekend which must be good because, otherwise, I have no idea why anyone would frequent this establishment. However, despite the poor food quality, I go. Secondly, I've noticed that I have never gone with anyone to this establishment. Like, I never, ever would suggest that a friend or acquaintance join me on any visits to Asia Cafe. I mean, that would be embarrassing because of the first reason alone but also because people tend eat alone there. It's just this thing that you DON'T DO at Asia Cafe. I've noticed that companionship is frowned upon there. Not by the administration, necessarily, but by other clientele. And by "noticing" I mean, "I have noticed other people frowning when people bring friends there."
Third, I find that my visits to Asia Cafe have an urgent air to them. I never "choose" to go to Asia Cafe, for example. I just find myself bending over the same styrofoam slop and then later notice that I am no longer hungry. This is not to say that I don't NOT enjoy going to Asia Cafe. I do, actually, enjoy Asia Cafe. But it is definitely not for any of the normal reasons to like an eating establishment. Usually people like particular restaurants because they serve good food, have good service, and have a reasonable sense of ambiance. Asia Cafe has none of these characteristics. None whatsoever. In fact, if it is wintertime, you will often find yourself quite cold in Asia Cafe. They don't seem to have any heat. And the trays, should you decide to use one, are incredibly sticky. So I guess you can't even say that it is comfortable eating in Asia Cafe. It is, in fact, kind of a chore. Still, I go. I must go to Asia Cafe.
Reporting from Palm Springs, California, my sister took this movie.
I love that you can see the windmills up close in the movie. There are several hundred windmills at this site in Palm Springs as shown by this photo which I can't figure out how to display here. (I think it may be because Flickr does not allow All Rights Reserved photos to be embedded though I'm not sure.)
As you may have guessed, these windmills exist to generate electricity. The first time I saw a windmill like this was in Western Massachusetts and it took my breath away because it was so beautiful. Some people feel that the windmills pollute the views of the area. I've never been to Palm Springs and I don't know what this area looked like before the windmill farm, but I'm hesitant to diss their existence. Not only do they have a zen-like, synchronous magic to them, but they were erected in the hopes of a minimalist, peaceful form of energy.
(As a side note, one of my students called me a "non-drug hippie" recently. To another faculty member. I guess I can't blame her.)
In other news, it has come to my attention that "Higher Love" by Steve Winwood may be about god loving. You know, about "worship" or whatever, in a Christian sense. And it's freaking me out. I received the Talking Back to the Night cassette as a gift in junior high from a girlfriend. Although I enjoyed listening to the radio and knew the words to many songs back then (I was in full 1980s pop mode) I was sort of behind in the whole music-ownership thing. The Hooters' One Way Home was my own first purchase, made after an incredible amount of internal debate. But then Bonnie Huggins gave me Talking Back to the Night and Invisible Touch by Genesis for my birthday. I enjoyed both albums a lot and was very grateful for the gift because I really liked both of them and plus, she tripled my collection. Anyway, I got into Higher Love, like a lot of people did. I liked the percussion solo part, I liked the horns, and, even now, I think it's a decent song. I really do. But J and I were listening to the lyrics today while eating tacos and I grew horrified.
Here are the lyrics - I'll take out the refrain: Think about it, there must be higher love Down in the heart or hidden in the stars above Without it, life is a wasted time Look inside your heart, I'll look inside mine Things look so bad everywhere In this whole world, what is fair? We walk blind and we try to see Falling behind in what could be
Worlds are turning and we're just hanging on Facing our fear and standing out there alone A yearning, and it's real to me There must be someone who's feeling for me [note that this is left ambiguous] Things look so bad everywhere In this whole world, what is fair? We walk blind and we try to see Falling behind in what could be
I will wait for it I'm not too late for it Until then, I'll sing my song To cheer the night along Bring it...Oh bring it...
I could light the night up with my soul on fire I could make the sun shine from pure desire Let me feel that love come over me [!!!] Let me feel how strong it could be
Bring me a higher love Bring me a higher love Bring me a higher love Where's that higher love I keep thinking of?
Dude, it's totally about god and shit. Don't you think? Ugh. I am notoriously bad about actually thinking about the lyrics I sing, when I know them (I hardly ever do) and this serves me right. I can just see all of the Christians standing together with their arms high and palms spread, swaying and crying now. Maybe Steve's "someone" is a real person. Maybe. But probably not.
Wow - thanks for checking in. I know it's been a while. (Stay tuned for some experimentation with a nasal cleansing pot.)
I just came from our town's holiday parade. Actually, it may officially be called the Christmas parade. Yeah, I'm one of those pinko commies who likes a nice multi-religious/secular parade actually.
This year, the chicken man and Shriners were absent. I never thought I'd get into parades as much as this but, like, what's up with that? Seriously, did the chicken man have something better to do this morning? I guess so. Hm.
This year, kids dressed as presents was my favorite. They looked really quite pleasantly goofy. J's favorite was the 3-legged dog. Watch for it as it is the SECOND dog that goes by. I have to say that that is pretty good and I'm glad he pointed it out.
Parades are really nice footage for weird movie mashups so PLEASE steal this and make something out of it. My camera is sucking more than ever though so I won't harass anyone to do it.
Actress Adrienne Shelly was found dead on November 1st in Manhattan. Initially it appeared to be a suicide but Diego Pillco just confessed to her murder.
Shelly co-starred in Trust (1990), a film by Hal Hartley, which is one of my favorite movies. It's a very tender, sometimes awkward story about a relationship and is, admittedly, "artsy".
I've been a fan of the Prelinger archive for a long time. They have oodles of public domain films, mostly of the 16mm educational variety. This one was made in 1941 and is called the Door to Heaven. This is my special creepy edit.
I've wanted to do some tiling for a long time but iMovie wouldn't let me do it. Yay for Final Cut Pro and the library's lab. I was afraid that I was going to stumble around the software when I went to do this but it went fine. I remembered, for the most part.
P.S. I sped up the donut production line for some reason. It just looked better. It's going twice the rate that the line usually goes. It takes time to fry that dough.
P.P.S. The pumpkin spice donuts are out AND they sell KK on campus now.
Georges Rousse is a French artist who installs perspective art in buildings that are in transition. Ellen Cassilly and Frank Konhaus of Durham raised the money to bring him to Durham and install art in some of the unused buildings around town. This blue square is in the Chesterfield building on the corner of Duke Street and Main. The art itself is minimalist, in my view, but the significance is great due to its placement. On the way to the installation, we all discovered a long-abandoned work environment. Linoleum floors, long, narrow hallways, gigantic metal desks, fluorescent lights, and frozen, oversized industrial clocks told us that it used to be a floor of administrative offices. I love that a photocopier was incorporated. (I *think* it is a photocopier...)
The circle one was my favorite. It was as if it appeared overnight, leaving scraps of another era intact:
The Chesterfield will be demolished someday soon because it is cheaper to use its foundation than to renovate the existing floor plans, electrical capacity, and plumbing. Durham is growing and its population doesn't desire a building like this. I would prefer that this be preserved in some way and I think it's more than nostalgia. We should remember our old work environments because they tell us where we used to be and where we are going.
The Independent's David Fellerath had an excellent article about it this week. The official site for the project can be found here.
Well, I finally did it. I managed to make it over to Krispy Kreme when they were actually making donuts. In case you're not in the know, this particular branch is special because they supply all of the supermarkets, gas stations, and what have you, PLUS any other Krispy Kreme locations in the area. So they're making a lot of donuts. If you see a Krispy Kreme truck somewhere in the Triangle, in all likelihood it is carrying donuts that originated in this one production line.
These particular donuts were of the jelly variety. I spied some sort of red goo being squirted in by assistants. (They were too far away for my poor camera.)
This movie looks particularly crappy because it is shot through glass. (I've heard that they don't want people taking pictures so I went incognito.) The first part is the worst quality, but it's the most important: when the donuts, happily floating and cooking in hot oil, are flipped so that their other side can be fried as well. For some reason, seeing raw, limp dough puff into a beautiful treat is incredibly satisfying.
P.S. I am eagerly awaiting their pumpkin spice donut. It comes out sometime in the Fall and is very, very good.
P.P.S. Jeez - I sound like such a donut freak in this post. I'm not really.
Ever since Montreal, my new thing is to eat a soft boiled egg in the morning. I have a new hi-tech egg timer and it works really well so I can get it just right. But you have to eat it with good bread or else it's not worth it. You gotta dip, man.
We didn't have any bread at all so I biked over to the local farmers market which is still going strong this time of year. There were a lot of tomatoes, herbs, eggplant and some squash is starting to come in now. And peppers. Here's Alex from Peregrine Farm roasting some peppers. Buy 2 pounds and the roasting is free(!) Then you put them in a paper bag, wait for them to cool down, and peel off the skins. Not pictured: butane tank.
The ReCYCLEry started back in 2000 with the help of Rich Giorgi, Andrea Richards, and Seth Elliott. The idea was to encourage donations of old/used/broken bicycles and get knowledgable volunteers to fix them up and teach others, especially kids, to do the same. In exchange for putting in some hours at the ReCYCLEry, even if it was fixing up another person's bike, you could earn a bike of your own. The ReCYCLEry has since moved twice from its original location on North Greensboro Street and changed leaders several times, but it's still basically the same idea. A gang of sleepy-eyed but enthusiastic bike mechanics of varying skills, some of quite a lot of expertise, show up on weekend mornings, greet others with coffee, work on the donated bikes, and help anyone that wheels in for repairs. I have volunteered there off and on myself. I love the low-key, amorphous group and I especially like the opportunity to show off my ratchet and wrench set from Sears.
The ReCYCLEry still works the same way but now they are starting a new lending program. You pay $10 to become a member and then they set you up with a key that accesses any one of their blue bicycles at various hubs around town. I think the town of Carrboro is helping them out as well as a way to encourage green transport. Anyway, here is some video of some public sprucing up that was going on this morning as a way of publicizing the new program.
On the way to and from Montreal, I took some little movies of the road. I'm one of those people that is impressed by bridges and monstrous highways. They dwarf the cars and it ends up being sort of beautiful.
There is a place near Atlanta where the roads snake together like some of these roads do. Do they have names for these like they do for bridges? They must.
Both of the movies posted today have sound and they take a tad longer to load than the others. The soundtrack for this one is a song by Antonio Carlos Jobim entitled, "Insentiez". It's a little over the top for this but oh well. I think the pacing works anyway.
As I wrote above, I drove to Montreal last weekend. We got there on Friday evening, hit the conference, and then went to dinner in Chinatown. Montreal is a very big place and almost everything is in French. People knew English but I don't know French so I was a bit lost when ordering or trying to find a parking space. That's fine and it made things more exciting.
The next day, I had breakfast with Jamy of Grateful Dating (see link to the right) and afterwards we trolled around the old part of town. It was touristy but only in the sense that it was expensive and a little crowded. As we walked around, I didn't quite feel like a foreigner even though technically, I was. I felt like I was peeking in on a different type of diversity. Canada's concept of diversity has been described as a mosaic rather than a melting pot which implies assimilation. For example, it's very rare to find a place in the United States where everyone speaks something else other than English, and when we do, we put borders around it and consider it different, the "other". Chinatown, little Mexico, K-town. "That's for them. Not us." In Montreal, being bilingual was the norm. My lack of understanding for French wasn't penalized - it was merely an inconvenience. I was missing out on all of the different interpretations, and of course, the ability to readily read street signs, and I honestly felt encouraged to do better rather than feel excluded.
Anyway, here is a guy that was playing in the old part of town. (I should note that he was not actually playing the Revolting Cocks. That is my addition.) I tipped him.
Can you see this movie? I changed hosting sites so let me know if you used to be able to watch these (when I was on YouTube) but now you can't. For example, Jerry, can you still not see this?
Things got a little kooky at another Durham yard sale on Saturday. This is E. who won state champion in baton twirling back in the day. Thanks so much for letting me post this footage, E. You know who you are. We here at Small Pictures are truly honored.
We went to a pet store briefly yesterday because, well, that's what you do when you're in mall, wandering aimlessly due to the euphoric nature of the air conditioning. They had a bird room which included, among other things, a cage of two parrots that were incubating eggs. After watching this video a few times, and staying up late thinking about it, I've come to the conclusion that these birds desperately, desperately need a nest. I would go mad with all of those wobbly eggs underneath me. A little dried grass and sticks or whatever and they'd at least STAY PUT so that I could sit upon them quite calmly.
I bought this toy this past weekend at Z and R and C's yardsale. They had a lot of awesome stuff. I bought a dress, this toy, and handfuls of tea packets. They had all of this tea that included flavors like plum cinnamon, ginger mango, and peppermint. I got all of the stuff for a dollar. They also had this dinette table that was spectacular but, for the life of me, I couldn't figure out where we would put it. It was only $20. Anyway, afterwards, we went to breakfast with B. I love B more than anything.
Anyway, enjoy. And just know that we here at Small Pictures just love comments. It makes us feel like comfy little blue-eyed kittens taking a nap. Or something.
The photo is a still from the new film version (2007) of the Broadway version (2002) of Hairspray (which is a version of the original film from 1988, mind you). It depicts John Travolta as Edna Turnblad and Nikki Blonsky as Tracy Turnblad. It makes me want to stab myself.
