Jesus Loves Me This I Know, A Jack Chick Tract Told Me So...

I LOVE Jack Chick Tracts, and today I got one! I was working on campus at Georgia Tech. While on my lunch break, a nice woman handed me a little book, about twice the size of a matchbook. It was crazy Jack Chick and his gospel comic books. When last I visited Mr. Chick's website, he had only been doing the miniature comic books, but now he has branched out into film with The Light of the World. The movie is a perfect example of his world view, where Christians can still go to hell and the Catholic Church is the devil's doing. The movie has online clips, including this one with the following quote.

"Satan has multitudes following the teachings of Buddha, but Buddha is dead... ... one of Satan's masterpiece's is Islam..."

While Chick writes all the text, he hires Fred Carter for the illustration. The color stills in the movie are great and have a wonderful garish quality that compliments the overboard narration. Carter's black and white images add a true heft to the books, and have alway reminded me of the works of 19th century illustrator Gustav Dore (see below).



Chick is extremely private, and believes that the Catholic Church is both out to "get him" and collecting all of his works. So it is ironic that Jimmy Akin of Catholic Answers got an invitation to the premier of the movie, and managed to post a short interview with the reclusive Mr. Chick.

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Also see Gustave Dore Art Images for more great images.

Cutie with a Hand-Cannon.

My sweet and smiling wife finds happiness is a warm gun, specifically a Ruger .44. Being the anglophile that she is, she wished to have a smaller Walter PPK that she would nickname "Moneypenny."

The poor image quality is due to the fact that this picture lives in my wallet, and the image is cropped due to privacy issues and good aim.

Deep Thoughts Wednesday: Marriage and Religion

This isn't going to be my soapbox on marriage and religion, so you don't have to worry about that. It's just that Scrivener posted a big quote from William Cronon that got me thinking about things in new ways. This is my attempt to do the same.

One... Does the religious strength of a country make it socially strong and sound? A study from the Journal of Religion and Society tries to tackle that subject. I got a headache from reading it and the graphs were a little confusing, so it must be smart.

Two... Does marriage instill loyalty? The main topic of James Q. Wilson's article, "The Decline of Marriage and Loyalty " sees looks at the institutions of marriage and cohabitation and sees something very specific...

"In a marriage, we merge not only our feelings but our wealth. We know that we not only share our love, we share our dependency. Cohabitation merely means living together; marriage means making an investment in one another...

...Cohabitation merely means shacking up. Of course, many marriages end in an easily arranged divorce, but even in this new era of no-fault divorces, they still must be done before a magistrate and be accompanied by a careful allocation of property and children. "

In this case, it sounds like loyalty is instilled as a result of not wanting to incure some sort of penalty, in this case financial. I haven't fully processed his arguments but a conservative world-view flavors the whole article, and leaves it wide open to criticism.

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Next post, I'll illustrate one of the main ways my wife instills loyalty in me and respond to Shooby's "Kosher Gunplay post by showing my sweetie with a large handgun.

Good Work Ethic: Impressing on a First Impression

Humility, manners and a good resume. Those are my best tools when walking into an office with no appointment, hoping to meet the right person that will say, "Yes, we will give you money for your time and effort."

So far, it's working pretty good. In my entire work history, a large majority of my jobs were on-call, contractual ones. I like a variety of jobs that I can pick and choose from. I also love the luxury of leaving the work at the site. When I finish for a day, there aren't any things to stress about because if there was something to be completed, either the boss would keep us there until completion or it could wait another day. It's a very specific style of work, and one that I love. What it lacks in stability and regularity, it makes up in life free of work-related stress.

So today, scouted two companies. The first was fine, with me filling out hired-hand forms and the obligitory talk about needing to give me a try before making any promises about future work. Fair enough. The second company got a good vibe. Big company, looked like money, had lots of rental equipment and was busy. I came in looking for temp work and they offered full-time. Most people would think that full-time is better then part, but not me. See, above paragraph. Also the job was above my skill level. I told them that I would rather sell myself short and prove myself in the long run. Some would say it shows a lack of confindence, but I know my strength's and I've made a decent living off of them in the past. But taking on too much would screw my employer as much as myself. Told my wife as much and she agreed. I love that she's got my back on this one.

And that's what I did on my Monday.

You Don't Know Me But... Looking for Work in a New City

The internet builds weird networks. Months before moving I was searching out Atlanta bloggers in an attempt to get a feel for my soon-to-be new city. Since moving here, the "Atlanta People With Blogs Who Get Together To Drink" meetup has given me a few faces and names, but I could walk by many of the people I read about on a daily basis. I find myself writing posts in response to what they are posting, questions they are asking, and events that I wouldn't know about if it weren't for them. For someone with few familiar faces in town, it's nice to get comments on posts. This post is a result of The Muse at Strip Search City asking me, "So, how's life in the ATL so far? "

Here's the answer, pretty damn good. Much of that is a result of my wife, who's job allows me to be selective and who's patience is letting me take a lot of time doing it. Plus, I tweeked my back and I need a strong back for many of the jobs I like. All the work I'm looking for is on-call, the jobs lasting for short periods of time. Art installation, lighting installation for rock & roll, theater. Since we moved here, I had been shopping my resume around; stopping by a collection of galleries, museums and the performing art center at Georgia Tech. Also, I tracked down a collection of email addresses of people identifying themselves as Atlanta stagehands and just emailed them. And I've had good fortune all around...

* Stopping by the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center resulted in a job a few weeks ago and meeting a bunch of good people.

* Talking to the folks at the Museum of Design resulted in a job that will take place in October.

* A visit to the Museum of Contemporary Art GA lead to an email yesterday with another job lead. I wait for a phone called to be returned.

* The emails from a few of the responding stagehands led to several leads including the Ferst Center for the Arts. An unannounced visit to the Ferst resulted in getting hired on tthe spot, put on the on-call list and asked to work this week.

Even if the people I introduced myself to didn't have work, they had suggestions, information, and warnings on places to avoid. Most everyone I met was generous with the help they had to a guy they had never met before and had no obligation to even give time to. I've had pretty good luck most places I've gone, but I've been most impressed with the people I am meeting in Atlanta. I've always liked working in the arts and performance scene and this has me hopeful about continuing that here.

Hopefully working more/less blogging will mean more interesting posts. And for those who are leaving comments, thanks. It's cool hearing from you all.

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Blogging Meme, posted by Tony, who read it at Scrivenings: 23:5 Blog Meme...

23rd Post, 5th sentence, "There is a big possibility that the simultaneous polar reversal in earth and sun will throw the solar system out of whack." *!

Instead of Doing Important Things...

Back pain from moving furniture bought off of Craigslist has me staying home and laying low. So I did this list. Saw it on The Muse's website and decided to have a go. I decided to move all my one-word answers to the bottom to make the reading less boring.

1. Name someone with the same birthday as you: December 4th - Tyra Banks (model, bitch slapper), Francisco Franco (Spanish General/dictator), Vassily Kandinsky (painter)
2. Where was your first kiss? My birthday, made following birthdays after that very unhappy for quite some time. And no I won't tell you which birthday, it still bothers me.
5. Have you ever sang in front of a large number of people? "Rainbow Connection" with Gail Beatty in 5th grade, maybe 6th.
6.Whats the first thing you notice about the opposite/same sex? Breasts, body.
7.What really turns you on? My wife's kisses.
8.What do you usually order from starbucks? Rarely go, but iced chai.
9. What is your biggest mistake: Perfectionism that prevents action and leads to procrastination/sloth.
11. Say something totally random about you: I like the Moog Cookbook
12. Has anyone ever said you looked like a celebrity? Ricky Nelson.
13. Do you still watch kiddy movies or tv shows? All the time: Invader Zim, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Teen Titans
15. Are you comfortable with your height? Now I am.
16. What is the most romantic thing someone of the opposite sex has done for you? My wife made a notebook of all the things she likes about me.
17. When do you know it's love? When you both come though something genuinely difficult and trying and you feel stronger for it.
18. Do you speak any other languages? Bits of Spanish, from working with people from Cuba, Mexico, & Puerto Rico. Happy I had a chance to meet them.
20. What magazines do you read? A bizarre collection, from pop culture to politics and science: Entertainment Weekly, Budget Living, Maxim, Bust, The Economist, Fortean Times, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.
24.What's something that really annoys you? Poorly argued opinions.
25. What's something you really like? Crunchy JIF Peanut Butter.
26.Do you like Michael Jackson? Only when talked about on the Daily Show.
27.Can you dance? Yes, but I don't enjoy it, much to wife's dismay.
28.What's the longest/latest you have ever stayed up? 52 hours due to insomnia.
31. Do you actually read these when other people fill them out? Only if the answers start looking interesting. Sorry about mine.

Questions answered "yes" or "no."

3. Have you ever seriously vandalized someone else's property? No.
4. Have you ever hit someone of the opposite sex? No

10. Have you ever hurt yourself on purpose? Yes.
14. Did you have braces? Yes

19. Have you ever been to a tanning salon? No.
21. Have you ever ridden in a limo?No.
22.Has anyone you were really close with passed away? No.
23.Do you watch mtv? No.
29.Have you ever thought that you were honestly going to die? No.
30.Have you ever been rushed by an ambulance into the emergency room? No.

A More Serious Post than Usual: Academic News from the Big Easy + A Few Links About New Orleans

(Apologies if there are any spelling/grammar errors. The editor wasn't available)

Some local Atlanta bloggers have been posting about post-hurricane New Orleans, but I've been reluctant up until now. We have friends who have been displaced, lost everything and/or stayed in the Superdome until Sunday of that week. And we have new neighbors, a couple that were given an apartment in or building due to the generousity of the buildings owner. The so-called "Blame Game" is one worth playing because now is the time to observe the failing of the various agencies who's purpose was to come to the city's aid. My father was involved in government and noted that it's just not the nature of government in any scale to operate quickly. But when an agency's express purpose is to be responsive in the wake of disaster, it important to see why it failed to do so, for the sake of future disaster victims.

While the news has been covering the worst of the catastophe, its interesting to watch the academic response. Tulane University is the largest employer in New Orleans and the third largest in Lousianna. In the aftermath of the storm, it has set up offices in Houston, is reaching out to students and staff via its website, and is paying it's employees (except for adjuncts). The college looks to rebuild both to help the city and to remain an important research university. The Chronical of Higher Education has an article on Tulane's efforts. The efforts of unaffected schools has been written about locally, with some critizism leveled at Georgia Tech and Morehouse (Metroblogging Atlanta: Is There Room At 'Da House?) for not providing aid to students from historically black New Orleans colleges.

Colleges are not just providing housing and food for these displaced students, but incorporating them in their student bodies. Which means the new students should be able to perform academically on the same level as the other students. Does this smack of of affluent colleges only offering aid to students they would like to make their own, and leaving other colleges to pick up the leftovers? Kind of, but it would be a disservice to deserving students not be allowed into a charitable college because a less qualified student was picked instead. Karsh who authored the Room At 'Da House? article followed up (Metroblogging Atlanta: Aha! There Is Room!) and found that Morehouse is making room for new applicants. But not without some guidelines...

"Morehouse has agreed to extend offers of admission to approximately 30 students from Xavier and Dillard as “special registrants” for the fall 2005 semester. Students from these schools who wish to enroll at Morehouse must present proof of enrollment in the form of a recent grade report or unofficial transcript, and must demonstrate that they were in good standing at their home institution. Priority will be given to graduating seniors, then to Georgia residents, and then to others on a first-come, first-served basis."

Many colleges have embraced the "service" aspect of their mission statements by coming to the aid of affected students and staff. And while it's easy to ask why can't they do more, there are limits to the resources these colleges have at their disposal.

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New Orleans Related Articles

calendarlive.com: Among the ruins, something to build on

A Sad Truth: Cities Aren't Forever

Don't Refloat - The case against rebuilding the sunken city of New Orleans. By Jack Shafer

The future of New Orleans | The way of Babylon? | Economist.com

New Orleans Museum, Under Lock and Guard - New York Times

Dawn Dedeaux (New Orleans Artist) "Collaborations with Katrina | 2005"

Gallery - Katrina Photos Part 1

"Bob Thinks Stop Being a Micro Man " - Poetry from Email

I started collecting junk email based on the surprisingly interesting subject lines. While I'm not the only one who has created poety from them (junk mail poetry - Google Search ), these are my contributions to the form.

The first one is about dirty thoughts and the second is about...um... stuff. Enjoy.

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Bob thinks... stop being a micro man!
Humongous rods in tiny bods... Pound
on her bloomin' onion.
Tear her shrimp bed apart.
Power drill debutantes... behind?!!!

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Electron affinity...
A lot of nudity bogs snowily
moot pews accomplishes.

Teaspoon swallowtail
intently opting swallowtail.

Cloudiest
suspending
life, acute senator...
keep yer farking money!!!
Prosecutor apology, incontestable.

Healthful strongest bible,
fission!
depressible!...
samarium.

Arab bumptious.

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Thank you. I was helped by Delmer Craft, ZULA TEAGUE, ALBINA LONGORIA, William, Aurelia Ozment and others nameless poets in the creation of these works.

Girls on Wheels: Flickr Pix of the Atlanta Roller Girls

Rollergirl action, originally uploaded by w!ll.

Pix of the local girls from their Sunday the 18th showing (Flickr: atlantarollergirls). Also included are pictures from the Vegas 2005 RollerCon, which was host to a huge number of roller derby girls and apparently included some Atlanta team members. The picture below was shot by NeonPoisoning friend Beatnik Sidearm at the notorious Double Down Saloon.

Rollercon 26, originally uploaded by beatnikside.

Art Stuff Weekend

Two weeks ago at the opening at the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center, I ran into a friend from New Orleans. Mark's a displaced gallery manager who landed on his feet at Marcia Wood's. I hadn't seen him in years and meeting up with was great. I used to work with him at a New Orleans gallery, and it was not only nice to see a familar face, but good to have contact locally in the art scene. He told Marcia that I hands like a surgon and she asked if I could remove schrapnel from an old war wound of her's. I told her five minutes with an X-Acto knife and I'd make her right as rain.

I did art stuff on Friday at the Castleberry Hill Art Stroll. I'm digging the fact that Atlanta has a collection of neighborhoods that all have gallery areas of their own. It means that opens happen regularly, allowing to visit these different areas.

Castleberry Art Stroll, originally uploaded by MDL.

The cute japanime from Kevin Fitzgerald is being shown at "local businessman," 263 Peters St. Much of the work at the various galleries was fine, but by far the most provocative pieces were at the Wertz Contemporary. Three of the pieces took took Nike/sports advertising and turned that style into a commentary on the how sports are targeted as the only means out of poverty for black youths. Good stuff.

Saturday was spent at the Saltworks Gallery checking out the Prema Murthy show and then on to the Moog documentary at Eyedrum. The Murthy works are images based on visual representation of data relating to Atlanta. The works themselves are quite nice, but leave you feeling out of the loop as they don't communicate the info that lead to their creation. Worth seeing for the abstract results. The movie was good but the post-flick music didn't meet the high standards that the movie performances had set. Less technical musicianship and more noise-making and knob-twiddling. Left at 11pm, before the event was over.

Sunday was spent at the free meditation courses offered at Georgia Tech and followed by a night with Harvey Birdman, Attorney at Law.

Prambulator!

I would be the coolest dad ever if I had this! I love this thing, although it doesn't look like it's a light stroller.

The search for cool baby stuff is taking place even though there is no bun in the oven. Daddy Types, the weblog for new dads has the same approach to kids stuff as most men have towards cars.

My wife loves the Glarkware 'Dingo snack" shirt, we can afford an IKEA ANTILOP high chair, we can't afford one item from Modernseed. I may be able to get the wife onboard with an OrbitBaby baby chair/stroller/car seat system. Or not.

But raising kids is an exercise in moral and social responsibility. Little did I know that as potential parents that we would have to look out for fascist aggitators cruising the pre-schools for disillusioned tots.

SF, originally uploaded by squirrelene.

Moog = Vogue @ Eyedrum: Analog Musical Heaven in Atlanta and Online

You may not know the guy but you know his machines. Robert Moog (sounds like vogue) made the electronic machines and keyboards that made groovey analog music possible. From the indie art enclave Eyedrum website and mailing list comes the following info on a Saturday night of Moog-themed events...

"An evening dedicated to the recently departed father of the Moog synthesizer and builder of theremins. Tonight's lineup will feature a screening of the film "Moog" by Han Fjellestad.



Eyedrum will host a Bob Moog tribute on Saturday, September 17. Bob Moog, inventor of the Moog line of synthesizers and builder of theremins died last month. Eyedrum will pay tribute by showing the film "Moog" by Hans Fjellestad. This feature documentary film explores Moog's collaborations with musicians over the years, and his ideas about creativity, design, interactivity and spirituality. The film was shot on location in Asheville, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Tokyo and London, featuring appearances by Keith Emerson, Walter Sear, Gershon Kinsgley, Jean-Jacques Perrey & Luke Vibert, Rick Wakeman, DJ Spooky, Herb Deutsch, Bernie Worrell, Pamelia Kurstin, Tino Corp. with Charlie Clouser, Money Mark, Mix Master Mike, and an eclectic mix of performers. This screening will mark the Atlanta premiere of the film.

MOOG [a film by hans fjellestad]

There will also be performances by local Moog enthusiasts (Neil Fried, Don Hassler, Howard Wershil, Zachary Hollback, Chris Swartz, Gene Thompson, William Silbernagel, Scott Burland, Robert Cheatham, Allen Welty Green, Oliver Smith, & Blake Helton) featuring many participants from last year's Theremin Summit, as well as Dennis Palmer and Bob Stagner of Shaking Ray Levis from Chattanooga."

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The Electrical Spectacle put out one of my all-time favorite albums. Analog keyboard instrumentals, real drummer, throwing down fast and grooving slow. The following review does a good job of describing the music of the band. Two of the songs are longer then 8 minutes, and all four are worth the download. MP3's to be found at Electrical Spectacle "Mood Modulation EP". I'd be curious to hear anyone's reaction, and no, I have nothing to do with the band.

Welcome to the Best of New Orleans! Hot Seven 12 31 02

"Like this contagious club concoction, Electrical Spectacle looks to the past for innovation. A study in the vintage keyboard sounds of the '60s and '70s, the Spectacle's retro-futuristic sound is the perfect antithesis to most of what goes on in the organic, roots-obsessed local music scene. The group's massive Moog synthesizer collection sets the tone for electro-effects and the whirring of the theremin. "

Drinking With Bloggers + Pastafarianism and Our Open-Minded President

Got to see the faces behind the sites at last night's APWBWGTTD (Atlanta People With Blogs Who Get Together To Drink). I didn't know a soul, so when I first arrived at the Brewhouse, I found myself sitting with the wrong group of computer people. Glad it wasn't the bloggers, because those first folks had an unfriendly vibe all around. One of their members accidently sat with the bloggers first, and he showed me where they were sitting. Younger, louder, and drinking more, the bloggers were much more promising.

Talked to;

Scott (Messages from the Ether) about black velvet paintings and art criticism...
Maigh who would make a kick-ass TV detective, grilled me about what I write on my site...
Lori (Mingaling) small talk, Vegas...
Lady Crumpet, small talk... and,
Suzi (Fat Asian Baby) about art stuff and her good taste in music.

A good night in all, but I missed Jon Stewart (The Daily Show), who is doing 4 part special on "Evolution, Schmevolution." Some of the opponants of evolution are pushing science-lite "Intelligent Design" and trying to get it included in science curriculums in Kansas. It's mainly a push from Christians, as I have yet to hear of a Buddist, Animist or Pagan I.D. proponant. The nice thing about intelligent design is that it does not attribute a specific designer, which allows for anyone to cite their architect of choice for complex life. And that's where the Flying Spaghetti Monster comes to attention. Pastafarians have come to the forefront in promoting the F.S.M. as the creator of all that is around.

"Let us remember that there are multiple theories of Intelligent Design. I and many others around the world are of the strong belief that the universe was created by a Flying Spaghetti Monster. It was He who created all that we see and all that we feel. We feel strongly that the overwhelming scientific evidence pointing towards evolutionary processes is nothing but a coincidence, put in place by Him...

...I’m sure you now realize how important it is that your students are taught this alternate theory. It is absolutely imperative that they realize that observable evidence is at the discretion of a Flying Spaghetti Monster. Furthermore, it is disrespectful to teach our beliefs without wearing His chosen outfit, which of course is full pirate regalia. I cannot stress the importance of this enough, and unfortunately cannot describe in detail why this must be done as I fear this letter is already becoming too long. The concise explanation is that He becomes angry if we don’t. "

There are many that have written the website of the Church of the Flying Spaghetti Monster with email condeming them for blasphemy and offering their forgivness as their faith askes of them. I love that the writter of this email...

"You already have faith if you believe anything you have never seen is true...I have heard and I accept you into my heart Jesus.

Now you will see for yourself the power of Christ!"

... is Brian Hull (BrianHull@boydgaming.com) of Vegas-based casino and gambling empire Boyd Gaming Corporation. One would think that Christianity runs counter to gambling. But the Skeptic's Annotated Bible provides pro-gambling/anti-gambling bible scriptures and author of "The Book of Virtues," by William J. Bennett sure had some strong ideas on what to do with his publishing profits.

Anyways, I'm sure George Bush would not mind including Flying Spaghetti Monster in the evolution studies as he recently remarked, "I think that part of education is to expose people to different schools of thought, and I'm not suggesting -- you're asking me whether or not people ought to be exposed to different ideas, and the answer is yes."

Atlanta's Search for a Slogan & Graffiti

Atlanta Graffiti Stroll I, originally uploaded by brookenovak.

I've only been living in Atlanta for a month. But I've been reading about the city's search for a slogan since I read the Bloglanta: Identity, It's What's in a Slogan! post in August. Slogans bring to mind a specific image of a city. Sin City... "What Happens in Vegas Stays in Vegas." The Big Easy... "The City that Care Forgot."

So, Atlanta... um... hmm... While I can't think of a slogan, I can start with how I see the city and what my slogan would try to capture.

Fertility: this city is overrun with growth, plants, and people. Houses and buildings perched on hillsides, roads carved every which way and everything surrounded by lush, green growth. Life abounds in Atlanta in a myriad of forms.

Decay: with abundant life comes decay. Trees become old or diseased. Buildings, abandoned or lost to fire. The ebb and flow of the city can be seen in where people have lived and where they have left.

Reclaimation and Reuse: this is where the pictures of graffiti started this line of thought. Just like industrial architects could have never imagined their factories turned into trendy lofts, graffiti turns anything into a canvas for its purpose. Now I'm not advocating property damage (which is what many property owners see it as), but some of the graffiti in town is just great art. And it's that creative spirit to take something like an old industrial complex and turn it into something like the StudioPlex. Atlanta is not just a Southern city, historic in nature and successful in a wide variety of business and social ventures. What little I've seen of the city's strengths seem to be ones that give Atlanta the flexibility and capacity to turn liabilities into positives.

So, I'd be curious what people who have lived in Atlanta for more than 31 days have to say about their city and what personifies it. And forgetting the city slogan, I think that Mr. Fangs should be Atlanta's adopted mascot.

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Brooke Novaks' Graffiti photoset got me started on this whole line of thought.

Mr. Fangs, originally uploaded by brookenovak.

Atlanta Photostroll 8.5 (Half a Stroll?)

20050905-01, originally uploaded by elvisthefish.

This picture and many more by Elvis the Fish at Atlanta Photostroll 8.5. The photostroll has become a regular thing here in our photogenic city and you can see more Flickr pix tagged with atlantaphotostroll85. For other pix just search for "photostroll" plus a number, 1, 2, 3, etc. I will be adding all the numbered "photostroll" links under the catagory "Atlanta Flickr and Photos" to the left.

Entertainment Recap: Penguins, Spaceships & The Salton Sea

It's the beginning of week four since our Atlanta move. Now that we are here, we get to take advantage of all the great features of the city: food, movies, music, etc... I hate that we missed Sealab 2021's white-boy rapper MC Chris. We blew too much money furnishing the new apartment that day and had to go without a live version of the Star Wars rap masterpiece "Fett's Vette." Which can be downloaded from his site.

But we have seen movies:

March of the Penguins @ Lefont Theater Garden Hills - the Lefont's a cute single screen theater in Buckhead. We parked on the street, walked a hundred feet and were in the door. The Lefont chain has one of the best pre-movie "buy-our-candy-don't use-the-phone" movies. Most other theaters' just suck, and why is that? Penguins are awesome, the movie was good, and one person wonders What Has Our Society Come To When March Of The Penguins Is The Blockbuster Hit Of The Summer?

Serenity @ AMC Phipps Plaza - I got the free movie pass while buying cds/comic books at Criminal Records. The movie was great, the Dragon-Con fans were loving seeing their favorite characters from the now-cancelled show (Firefly), and the two old ladies who were expecting a quiet movie (which the name would imply) left when Summer Glau was impaled in the head with some sci-fi medical device. Sci-fi fans, go see a smart movie that actually has a decent plot that pays off in the end.

Plagues & Pleasures on the Salton Sea @ Eyedrum - It took me more time than expected to find this tucked-away art space near the Oakland Cemetery, but totally worth it. This documentary was one of the last movies shown as a part of the Atlanta Underground Film Festival. The Salton Sea is a man-made lake, a mistake that has remained since the turn of the century. The movie features the folks that make it home, including "Hunky Daddy," a drunken, Hungarian freedom-fighter who loves his bit of American paradise. The Salton Sea is an environmental disaster waiting to happen, and one that will probably happen in our lifetime.

Movies I still want to see... Murderball, Broken Flowers, Howl's Moving Castle, Megacities, and maybe The Aristocrats.

Suggestions, reviews, contributions?

Dragoncon 2005: Revenge of the Midriff

Dragoncon, originally uploaded by MDL.

Okay, that's it! Britney Spears had way too much influence on this year's DragonCon! Mark Lusher posted the top picture as part of his 2005 DragonCon pictures. In searching for his picture, I found the second picture. Now I have no beef with costuming or cross-dressing, but a boy's belly-button has no place in the Empire. What would the Emperor think!

The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer - 4

This is the 4th edition of "The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer" and it's nice to have a local offering for the first time. The National Archives & Records Administration, Southeast Region Archives is located close to Atlanta, in nearby Morrow, GA. Their website has an online exhibition of images, including the one above, taken in 1951 and from documents from the Tennesee Valley Authority. Click the image for a slideshow of TVA images, and check out the exhibition page for more documents and pictures.

Note that NARA allows for copies of records to be made. So these pictures may all be available for purchase.

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The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer - 3

The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer - 2

The Best Photographs the Federal Government has to Offer - 1

It's Art Friday! Hurray, Art!

Why is it "Art Friday"? Reason #1.

My next paycheck will be from the Atlanta Contemporary Art Center. Got to aid in the installation of their upcoming show, "Red Beans and Rice." Me, I was helping Arthur Liou, a video artist and professor at Indiana University. The curators are Kóan-Jeff Baysa and Craig Bunting, both very nice guys and on the "enjoyable" end of the curatorial spectrum. The other end is "indulged megalomania, with delusions of splendor." I met that one working at the Guggenheim.

Kóan-Jeff Baysa edits the online art mag art::pulse and Craig Bunting has a site, Running Film, which is an online gallery of his work and collaborative works with John Lair.

Why is it "Art Friday"? Reason #2.

The new Franz Ferdinand song "Do You Want To?" is pretty good, and the video makes fun of pretentious art gallery culture. Click the picture to give your bandwidth a workout and see the boys make fun of Duchamp.

Sez one funny guy, "Wow, that video was like the art-rock version of "Fight For Your Right To Party". I'm not sure if that makes it great, ridiculous or both."


"I hear your friends are all so arty!"

A Whole Bunch of Atlanta Pix

Junior Raindrops (Maybe on Irwin & Krog), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

See these raindrops look all innocent. But when raindrops get together, they form gangs. Gangs of wild raindrops! See this educational animated movie from 1948, The Adventures of Junior Raindrop for the drippy truth!

Slow Down in Cabbagetown, originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

Damn kids!!!

Hiiiii !!!!! (On Decatur), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

This guy reminds me of a hawaiian guy I worked with at the MGM.

6th St. Fixer-upper 1, originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

8th St. Fixer-Upper, originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

Six Feet Under (Oakland Cemetary), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.

Watertower (Irwin & Auburn), originally uploaded by Mr. Kimberly.