The relief rush

Every day, about an hour after lunch, everyone in the office gets the
same feeling. This feeling can only be described as the, OMG I have to
go right now feeling. Maybe it's the coffee from breakfast colliding
with the vitamin water from lunch, maybe it's just that we've all
reached maximum capacity. Who knows. What we do know is that no one
wants their coworkers to catch them doing their serious business. What
to do? I propose that we stagger our lunches so that the inevitable
intestinal pile-up happens in a way that keeps us from embarassing
bathroom revelations. Done.

Time to learn

Why is it that every summer, we declare a season of change and newness for our social lives? Only to fall back into comfortable ways of sloth and missed opportunities. Even though I have a big project to complete this summer, I don't have the energy to visit museums and parks and shows like I would want. But, I plan to do something about it. Instead of allowing the important educational stuff to lose in the lottery for time against the important work stuff, I'm going to combine them. Done.

I can't tell you how disappointed I am at western union.

Lisp'n Here!

Is it just me or do a lot of tv personalities have very noticeable lisps and speech impediments. I just need to know two things. Number one, did they get hired becuase of their unique consonant expressions or in spite of them and, number two, do they even recognize or realize that they are not producing certain letters from the correct and agreed upon places on the tongue, teeth, and lips? Kevin Pereira is one of my favorite aural offenders. I really enjoy his presentation of gadget news and digi-globe cultural memes. I'm just not sure how much of his ths in place of s I can stand.

Have we reached a point where, certain things like perfect diction/pronunciation don't matter anymore? Maybe I'm being too harsh and people like Kevin are aware of their difference and simply aren't able to do anything about it. If that is the case, then I am truly sorry. If it's not, then I'd like someone to explain this whole thing to me. I used to have a horrible stutter, and it drove me mad to listen to it, so I worked hard to slow things down and get them out of my mouth right or not at all. Perhaps that's why I'm a little sensitive.

Modern Speak

So. I've noticed that a new way of constructing meaning has come about in pop culture lately. People talk differently than they used to. My best guess as to the origins of this new lexicon is that it is a direct descendent of ubiquitous technology use. Although I myself have a hard time figuring out the code, I thought I'd try and begin a little dictionary to help acquaint the public with the subtle nuances of modern speak. Here we go.

So = Listen, you may enjoy this

like = reminds me of, you know, obviously or perceived to be

Here's the thing = I beleive, the core concept is, I've noticed

Acronyms = easy ways to confuse others and avoid details

worst ever/ best ever = too lazy to describe with elaborate adjectives

I'm swamped = drowning a dirty mess

hot mess = a bad situation thats been festering for a bit

very _____ = resembles, can be compared to

There will be much more to come. I'm going to keep an ear out for new sayings.

Mommy was Right

In one of the first scenes in Mommy Dearest, Joan Crawford, played by the incomparable Faye Dunaway bathes in her ultra-luxurious bathroom. We see her wash her face in scalding hot water and then use ice water to rinse away the grime. Why would someone torture themselves like that everyday? I'll tell you why, because it works. I've recently taken to using the steam room at my gym after each workout. I sit in the steam room for as long as I can bear it and then I rinse in a super cold shower. The heat opens up my pores and encourages my body to sweat-out toxins while the cold water closes pores up again. My skin feels fresh, clean and tight. At first it was a little uncomfortable, now I look forward to it as part of my daily ritual.

From H to O

I'm very fortunate to work in the Chelsea Market, where there are a lot of opportunities to interact with the various communities of people that live and work in the area. Recently, I've been witnessing an amazing fundraising program and art exhibit inhabit the first floor of the building. It's called Charity Water and it's a non-profit organization that helps to provide clean water solutions to people in developing nations. In the fountain that serves as a sort of centerpiece for the Chelsea market, they've constructed a working wishing well to collect money for their cause. I think it's genius. Charity water brings heart and organizing together to make clean H2O a reality for men, women and children everywhere.Please help support them by visiting the photograpy exhibit in the main hall and making a donation online today. You have to, I've already put some coins in the fountain and made a wish.

Is Goth Green?

Latex, old lace, leather, found items, homemade and recyled, goth designers are really making a comeback with a wild assortment of new ideas about what erotic-wear, cos-play and everyday should look like. I'm really interested in finding out how green these creations can be.

Global Chicken Crisis

While grabbing a bite to eat at a small chicken joint in scenic Crown Heights Brooklyn, I snapped this pic which illustrates the new mentality of the American businessman or woman. What else can I say? I'm still learning about the minutia of the Global Economic Crisis through media majicians like NPR's This American Life. Check out episode #375 for a detailed explanation of the crisis from the perspective of failing banks.

Unboxing is Porn

Ok. Am I the only one that thinks this whole unboxing phenomenon is a little strange? Think about it. People buy new stuff as soon as it hits the streets, then they meticulously document taking it out of it's packaging and using it for the first time. I remember when reviews were just about how the product worked and whether consumers should fork over money now or wait until something better and cheaper came along. Now, "reviewers" unbox items and talk about the form of the product, the weight, how it feels in their hands and the sexiness of the design. (Yes, I've heard people use the word sexy) Current trends, and cache have begun to precede function and practicality in these matters. I'm not saying that I don't enjoy a litttle 'Gadget Pron' as G4 calls it. I just wonder what this means about our relationship with technology. Are we using technology to get to know each other and ourselves or are we actually beginning to have feelings for objects?

Thank Thick

Well, I think we've finally made it to the next bend on the winding road of body-type preferences. Glamorous A-list stars like Queen Latifah, Beyonce, Jennifer Hudson, Salma Hayak and the Kardashian girls have made the media notice the benefits of having voluptuous curves. There was a time that anyone without a wiry thin silhouette was quickly reminded of our obsession with abnormal, ultra-ideal/stylized body types. Now, a little thickness can be regarded as a sign of beauty, substance and empowerment. How did that happen? 

I think it could be a shift in the way that women consume images themselves. For years, there was a sense of shame attached to the growing rates of obesity in America. When reports recently surfaced exposing adolescent obesity rates and prevalence of child diabetes, the American family took notice. More and more people are tuning into shows like The Biggest Loser and other health oriented media offerings that question notions of  body image and eating habits. It's a classic case of media saturation and awareness. Talking about something loud and long enough and people will begin to act on it. Instead of just being body-crazy we're finally body-conscious. Looking at ourselves truthfully and being able to say this is healthier than that because of these reasons is smart and a skill that we're being forced to learn so that we can teach it to our obese, diabetic kids. Lesson learned. Thank you thickness.

Fasianismic

Asian fashion designers are really getting their due. Since Michelle Obama rocked a few Jason Wu numbers and designers like Yohji Yamamoto, Thakoon and Issey Miyake are seeing a boost in interest. They certainly deserve it. In the past ten years or so, fashion capitals like Paris and Milan have had to relinquish power to budding centers of post modern culture like Beijing, Hong Kong, and of course, Tokyo. China's increase in wealth and economic strength brought on by America's steady downturn has opened up the floodgates for new sensibilities and aesthetics to gain in value throughout retail markets. In times gone by, America was the undisputed cultural hero, dispensing hip hop and hollywood to the world, now, America finds itself consuming visions and images of itself born elsewhere. 

American Idol quandry?

Is this show classified as a reality show, televised singing contest, game show? What is it exactly. I was sitting there watching the judges cut people for the top 36 and it seems so subjective and random. Do we really trust Randy, Paula, Simon and that new lady to choose who we should be into? I vote no. I vote no to this mystical, secretive, selection system people!

Feeling the Squeeeeze!!

I can't believe how much this recession is effecting me. Now, it may just be that I've somehow greatly overestimated my own earnings, but even so, the impact on my career alone has been jarring to say the least.  I've been transferred from a consumer pharma agency to a professional one. Although I certainly enjoy the challenge and have benefitted from learning new skills and the biology surrounding a whole new therapeutic category, I can't help but feel like a fish out of water at times. How can I make my mark and build on my past successes if I'm constantly moving from one venue to another, from one profession to another? It's all quite frustrating really.

Money has never been my forte. I've always believed that if you work hard and honestly, you should be able to make ends meet. Now, I'm looking for a second job. I don't know how to explain it.

Surprise Ending

So, I'm on the subway platform, waiting for the train, listening to one of Brandy's unreleased songs, Surprise Ending. A train that I don't want comes and the doors open. A young white woman rushes towards a door just as its closing and it closes in her face, startling her enough to make her drop her cell phone. I gasp, she gasps, and we stare in horror as it falls right into the crack between the train cars and the platform. The train speeds away. She and I stare in horror. She looks around for help, people gather and join us. We look down in horror. There it is, on the ground next to the tracks, but not the third track. So I just hop down, grab the phone, pass it up to her and then hop back onto the platform. She calls me a life-saver and I go back to listening to my music. Surprise. That's the end.

H.R.H.

What if I started a new monarchy? What if I could get people who are interested in a cultural experiment that explores what a modern day monarchy would feel like to meet up and hang out?

IN AWE of OBAMA's INAUGURATION

I've just arrived home from the inauguration of the 44th president of the United States of America.  I spent a few days in our capital, Washington D.C., going to parties and talking to people about this important moment in history. Now that I'm home, I feel very different about the various events that I was fortunate enough to have been able to be a participant. While riding home on the bus, I overheard a young American student say to another passenger, "...It's like America is cool again...". That sentiment, scares me a bit. After analyzing this new precedent from the angles of race, class, civil rights, immigration, age, etc., I wonder if political pundits, cultural theorists, and other academics will ponder the question of why now, and how do people, white and black, American and foreign, really see this moment, experience it and re-tell it?  Are we Americans just getting a "cooler" president, or are we getting this  "new era" that I'm already hearing about on the news? Why can we ask a black president to do things and create changes in a way that we've never demanded from other leaders?

Vendors on the street yell at me "HOPE, 5 dolllars!". I shudder. Blacks and whites over 40 introduced themselves to one another and began civil conversations in public. I smile. Barack gives a speech that nearly moves me to tears. I beam. I read that her considers his white speech writer "his mind-reader". I cringe. There is something here that has me puzzled. I know that I have issues with race. I grew up in a small town in the south, there is no question about how my family's experience of sharing social spaces white people has been. So why can't I just accept that America is finally embracing a person of color for who they are, and not what they imagine them to be?

I have every confidence that Barack's presidency will outperform anyone alive has seen come before it, I just whether or not we're witnessing the seeds of our hopes being sown or the fruits of our labor being harvested.

fabric on a window

I had some scraps of fabric that I was saving to make pillows laying around during the holidays, after I put up a new curtain, I found that it was too sheer and needed some help, so I tied these scraps together to look like drapes and such. Yes, it looks a hot mess, but I think the way that its done is interesting and has a toga kind of feel to it. I'll take it down when I get sick of it.

Another Brandy Tragedy

I have to go ahead and get this off of my chest once and for all. Brandy  has gotten a raw deal. There, I said it. And not just by the entertainment industry, and music fans everywere, but by her own management. In the past year, I have downloaded about 12 or 13 unrealeased Brandy tracks that never made it onto any of her albums that were AMAZING. Some of the best R&B I've ever heard period. Don't believe me, just listen to SWEET NOTHINGS , FOLLOW ME, AFTER THE FLOOD, ESCAPE, FEEL SO GOOD, LIST, etc. 

I know AMAZING. Now, here's the thing, anyone who knows anything about music can tell you what she's done for her genre and how the quality of her work and her instrument have only improved over time. Period. So why is most of her best work not being included on her albums. I'm confused. Who has it in for her? This las song I'm going to post was the straw that broke the camels back for me. I need answers after this. I emplore the interweb to respond to me, and tell me why this is happening. I think we all deserve the honest answer to this artistic tragedy. Now, I'm going shut up and let Brandy talk. Listen to the emotion and skill that puts into yet anothe unreleased, superlative piece simply entitled, FREEDOM.

 

I saw the train comin' for me with the force of a million marching
I felt the eyes of so many, the whispers and shouts about my belief in us
I see the cloaks on the judges, flaws in the judgement, beast in the dungeon that dont scare me
And I'll say it on a mountain, say it all in public, hold a press conference to speak about my freedom

Just us - lookin' upon a city of towers soaring
Just us - standing our ground in a crowd of lions roaring
Just us - I won't be held, I won't back down no more
Just us - Freedom
Just us - Freedom

I flew away this morning, what if I ran away and never came back
And all of the fame means nothing, it's all a game and the gladiator just won't win
And I see cloaks on the judges, flaws in the judgement, beasts in the dungeon, don't look scared to me
And I'll say it on a mountain, say it all in public, hold my head high, I'ma speak about my freedom

Just us - lookin' upon a city of towers soaring
Just us - standing our ground in a crowd of lions roaring
Just us - I won't be held, I won't back down no more
Just us - Freedom
Just us - Freedom

Free to run on the water
Free to believe, free to love
Free to speak their mountain off the ground(?)
I believe in us

Just us - lookin' upon a city of towers soaring
Just us - standing our ground in a crowd of lions roaring
Just us - I won't be held, I won't back down no more
Just us - Freedom
Just us - Freedom

My Freedom
My Freedom
My Freedom
Freedom, Freedom

Holiday Hope

So, '09 is finally here, and all of the promises I made to myself in '08 are either coming back to haunt me or coming to fruition. My multi-pronged consulting agency and design studio, my trip to a foreign land, my improved budgeting skills, my relationship acumen, my this that and the other... What will become of these idioms, these internal insinuationans and assertions? Well, I can't say much about what will happen, that's one thing is certain. However, I can describe the events that have already occured that give me permission to hope for more good to befall me in the near future.

This Christmas, my immediate family came to visit me here at my apt. here in Brooklyn. Not only did they come to visit, they stayed for much of the holiday season. I was ecstatic. My mother and two younger brothers put everything else aside and sacrificed their plans to come to New York, one of them, for the first time. Their visit was a Christmas gift to me that can only be called a blatant act of goodwill. Ever since my brother brought to my attention the strain that distance and lack of communication was playing on my familial relations, I've been determined to interact with them all with much more vigor and sincerity, no matter what the consequences. We all know that certain things about family can be unpleasant, but the benefits of staying close, truly close to your family always outweighs the cost. I'm very grateful to them for putting themselves through difficult and expensive traveling during a recession to help repair old bonds and foster new ones. 

Thanks