Pantone Mugs

Colorful glugging in the morning...

Top Chef FINALE!

I think Toby is getting a boost from a box?? 

Methinks that Kevin will take the title...

Love this analysis by EW....

Mad Men Gingerman Cookies

GIMME!

Via: Serious Eats

Fishing Bloopers!

Gotta love a blooper reel from time to time and this video, compiled from outtakes of a fishing show called Bill Dance Outdoors, is TEXTBOOK.  Silly slips and falls,  wily animal upstaging, machinery mishaps, and inadvertent tumbles into water galore.  I find this guy, Bill Dance,  endearing (must be the Gulf Coast in me) and suspect that these gaffes will catapult him out of the specialized niche he occupies in the world of fishing and into viral video immortality.



Via: Gawker TV

xoxo

Little Dead Riding Hood

According to io9.com, most of Tim Burton's early stuff on display at his MOMA retrospective are from rejected movie pitches...Of the slides featured in the io9 post,  here's my fave:

Title: Little Dead Riding Hood

I have a penchant for things related to red riding hood...

Exhibition runs till April 2010.

Old school versus New School...Wallets!

 Old Skooool:  I like the Navy and Pink color combination.

 New School: Belle De Jour French Flap Wallet

Love both. Which one?  Conflicted. It's the Gemini in me.

Via: 
Designboom.com
YSL

Fun with Photoshop and Brett Ratner

This is a plug for my friend's site http://ratnerfilms.tumblr.com/ It's essentially a virtual raspberry to THE director of  terrible, high-concept,  popcorn sequels, in the form of Photoshop poster spoofs...

Another poster I like:

Via: ratnerfilms.tumblr.com/

Henry Selick Q&A

Off to see Henry Selick tonight...

A Coralined Picture of Me

Fernando Botero

Price realized: $614,500. Huge. 

Love this Colombian artist and his round aesthetic... Both Sotheby's and Christie's are having Latin American Art Auctions this week, featuring some of Fernando Botero's pieces.  The art is still on exhibition at Sotheby's till 1 PM...   Here is  another Botero sculpture commissioned for the Nemacolin Woodlands Resort, near Falling Water and about 2 hours away from my home town:

Fat Bird. Literally. That's what they call it.

Via: The New Yorker

Mista Cookie Jar's New Album "The Love Bubble"

New album available on CDBaby....

Here is one of the tracks:

The Love Bubble - Mista Cookie Jar

...and here's one  I'm on! 

A Beautiful Shoulder (feat. Anna Pizarro) - Mista Cookie Jar

Shooting Stars! Leonid Meteor Shower

National Geographic reports "...sky-watchers [in North America] are advised to venture out away from bright city lights between 2 a.m. and 4 a.m. on the 17th, when they should see 30 to 50 meteors an hour."  It's an annual show, so it's not a terrible loss if you miss it this year.  I actually heard about this through FB.  I don't think it's quite the "historic" celestial event that FB is purporting it to be, but I'm sure it will be worth staying up for if your view isn't marred by urban light pollution.  I will probably not venture out of Manhattan to see it, but I do like the thought of falling stars cascading across the sky. PRETTY! 


Via: National Geographic

Auto-tune and Weird Al: Does it get better?

I was going to post an adorable video about a run-away panda, but this Weird Al/Rocketboom bit about auto-tune on the You Tubes was too funny to pass up.  Guilty pleasure confession: I actually like auto-tune.  Honestly, if I owned an I-phone, it would not be beyond me to make a $3 impulse purchase to get  that dumb I am T-Pain app.  I suppose the chuckle factor would wear thin after a day or two...



The first part of the video is a little boring, but wait for the parody part that Weird Al explains...

Oh, here is the panda video too...for Friday kicks! (Thanks Lina!)






Via: Rocketboom.com, Dailystar.co.uk and  Buzzfeed.com

Dwayne Michael Carter Jr. and his Purple Drank caught on film

The Carter is a new documentary about L'il Wayne that ran the festival circuit, screening at Berlin and Sundance. The trailer  makes The Carter look like a serious, prestige film of some sort,  but it's heading straight to DVD.  Unfortunately, with its middling reviews,  I'll be netflixing this as a rainy day alternative to re-runs of The Hills.

Via: Cinematical.com 

Fun with Barcodes: Japanese Design

By turning usually unassuming and indistinct barcodes into visual confections, the Japanese have proven their knack to transform the mundane into something special and really f*cking cute...yet again! 

Via: PSFK

Wes Anderson at the 92nd Street Y/Tribeca

Going to see Wes Anderson speak about The Fantastic Mr. Fox tonight .  Stimulating Q&A! Film nerdery! Open bar! Check out this video below about the "making-of" the stop-motion animation film.  You'll learn that 18.5 TBs of footage was shot (for realz??),  how Anderson directs from a quaint flat in Paris,  and that the producer of the film  has a voice like Billy Barty, among other interesting production tidbits.  


Via: Wired.com 

shitmydadsays on the Tweeter

I'm late to the game on this one (late for at least 710,010 followers ), but you must start following shitmydadsays, which is written by Justin Halpern, a 29 year old, California-based rando who recently moved back in with his parents.  By simply tweeting the snarky remarks his 73 year old dad makes, this guy landed a book deal AND an option deal with CBS. Holy jackpot. He's only been tweeting since AUGUST??  Here are some of my faves:

"The baby will talk when he talks, relax. It ain't like he knows the cure for cancer and he just ain't spitting it out."12:51 PM Oct 22nd from web

"Just pay the parking ticket. Don't be so outraged. You're not a freedom fighter in the civil rights movement. You double parked."12:59 PM Oct 18th from web
"That woman was sexy...Out of your league? Son. Let women figure out why they won't screw you, don't do it for them."12:10 PM Oct 12th from web
"My flight lands at 9:30 on Sunday...You want to watch what? What the fuck is mad men? I'm a mad man if you don't pick me the hell up."5:42 PM Aug 15th from web



Via: Mashable 

Brothers Trailer

Based on the second half of the trailer for the upcoming flick,  Brothers seems like the serious, dramatic  interpretation of annoying TBS comedy of errors, While You Were Sleeping.  Yes, no, maybe so?  Not really sure about the casting.  Tobey and Jake I get... Natalie Portman as a military wife? Don't buy it.  But, I'll reserve judgment for now.

Sunday Delight: Will Cotton Bakery/Art Event

At 40 Great Jones Street today! I bought pink peppercorn, gingerbread, and salted caramel macarons at the artist, Will Cotton's baking/art event. Don't miss the stunning and eye-catching painting of an Aphrodite-like model in the buff splayed out on top of a puffy cloud of pink cotton candy!

Pretty Polar Graphs

More pictures that turn numbers into something easy and fun. Well, that's my take on it at least. So purty.

Via: FFFound.com

Tina Fey's Top 10 on 30 Rock

Season 4 hasn't been a favorite for some critics, but  despite the weak plot lines, I still look forward to watching 30 Rock on Hulu... Not exactly must-see, nix plans TV, but entertaining nonetheless...Here is a Top 10 list of Tina Fey's favorite jokes written for the show. Giggle.



Via: The Daily Beast 

The Fantastic Mr. Fox?

Wes Anderson's trailer for the upcoming stop-motion animation film The Fantastic Mr. Fox is being screened before the snoozefest , Where the Wild Things Are.  Now, I don't wanna be a hater, but on the big screen the movement of the characters--particularly when talking--seemed choppy to the point of distraction, as if the audio and picture were out of sync.  It's probably the stop-motion and I shouldn't expect the same fluidity as a Pixar film.  I believe Coraline was all stop-motion too and didn't suffer from the same problems. Well, I'm still psyched to see the film, as I've always admired the charming details, visual humor and stylized sensibility of Anderson's films.  

Boring Don Draper Costumes?

I am kinda obsessed with Mad Men these days, but check out this story about boring Don Draper Halloween costumes...


Via: Sorry I Missed Your Party

The Plural Form of You Mapped Out

Based on my own quirky usage of the varied plural forms of "you", I can assimilate pretty easily to every state... But, I think I say "you all" and"you guys"the most these days... Good, bad, ugly?

Via:  Buzzfeed

Where the Wild Things Are: VOD or DVD, your choice.

At some point in 2009,  along with the slobbering film junkies and depressive Muppet nerds,  I was eagerly anticipating the release of Spike Jonze's latest film, Where the Wild Things Are.  Dave Eggers was attached as co-writer; the trailer was lush and atmospheric; and the indie scoring had the right dose of I-tunes download appeal. If anything at all, Warner Bros. had cornered the McSweeney-reading, American Apparel-clad hipster market like nobody's business. But amid all of the excitement, reports of development and production snafus began to leak out into the blogosphere, which signaled that this beloved children's book could potentially turn into a cinematic shit-show.  The more optimistic side of me held onto the belief that Spike Jonze could actually pull it off.  After all, he successfully executed Being John Malkovich (Love!), Adaptation (Like.) and a countless number of music videos.  All required making sense of the nonsensical, or, at the very least, giving narrative form to emotional qualities in music--quite an ambitious feat for a filmmaker.

Unfortunately, despite the capable cinematography and poetic visuals, the story does not sustain one's interest for the duration of a feature length film.  Watching a monster clobber another monster, walk across the desert, or barbarically yawp over a seaside cliff, may have some impact on the audience for the first time, but the following 20 times--without empathy, believable motivation or entertaining action sequences--it all becomes a monster bore.  I suppose it was difficult to watch, because there was no emotional depth to the kinetic energy. 

The film wasn't completely flawed, the first 15-20 minutes that provided the back-story of Max, the main protagonist, and his family was lovely and competently rendered, perfectly and poignantly illustrating family dynamics (especially with the mother, played by Catherine Keener) and the psychological qualities of the characters.  Ultimately, the experience of watching Where the Wild Things Are was a bit like seeing someone's vacation photos. Lovely to look at, but not very fun because you aren't in them. 



 

More Aziz

Cardboard Cutouts

Kill a tree, save a deer!  I've seen these everywhere in New York...

Via: Trendhunter.com

New Specs

Check out my new specs and latest indulgence in eyewear. Cutler and Gross...
Do not comment, I've already had the lenses made...done deal.

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Another over-priced lamp that I dig....

Made by Autoban...  Still searching for  the perfect floor lamp.  It's agonizing to get up out of bed to switch off the lights before hitting the hay.  Feel free to send suggestions.
Via: Hivemodern.com

An Education

This film is worth seeing for Carey Mulligan's praise-worthy performance of Jenny,  a 16 year old girl morphing into a woman of wisdom and sophistication.   Roguish love-interest, Peter Sarsgaard, although an actor of note, isn't quite charismatic or hunky enough to compel me to believe that Jenny would trade her scholarly ambitions for a dingy life with him in London.  Felt repetitive and slightly trite, but captures mood and place competently.  Can't offer a ringing endorsement....Off to see Bronson!

Black Trousdale Floor Lamp at Jonathan Adler

Me likey.  But really should find a reproduction....Any look alikes out there?

Retails at $995. GULP.

Via: Jonathan Adler

Glee!

If  there's a part of you that doesn't enjoy this show, then you must be clinically depressed.    

"La, la, la,la, la la....."

Glee is like the Gatorade Gum of my youth---sweet, tangy and leaving you salivating for more.  Gatorade Gum lived a a fairly long shelf life, let's hope this show does too.... 

Side Note: When I was a wee lass and a member of my own alma matter's Glee Club, we did not sing alterna-pop Top 40, as they do on the show. Sadly, no Deee-lite, The Breeders, Jesus Jones or Ned's Atomic Dustbin. In fact, the piece indelibly seared into memory is Benjamin Britten's Wolcum Yole.  

Check out this track. 

http://www.last.fm/music/Benjamin+Britten/_/Wolcum+Yole!

Yeah,  my sentiments exactly.  Snooze-a-rama. 

I don't think that we, collectively,  had the talent pull it off. Plus,  it was a bitch to sing soprano, being the the shaky mezzo-soprano/alto I am.  Our frustrated director lost all hope and gave us something easier to sing in front of the school.  Needless to say, "invitationals" and the element of competition were not part of the overall experience for our lowly choral group. 

Via: Hulu.com

  

Good Design? Sherbet colored tupperware

Sent via BlackBerry by AT&T

Then and Now Photography - Robert Frank

I'm really drawn to "Then and Now" photography, whether it's the depiction of the decline or gentrification of a neighborhood, pre/post war photos, before-and-after  disaster images, or just simply the representation of the passage through time, like Steve McCurry's iconic photos of the Afghan woman in National Geographic:

 The most chilling (and elegant) stink-eye caught on film.

The juxtaposition of 2 images, illustrating the process of change is fascinating.

Most recently, I came across this Robert Frank photo (left) from The Americans on NPR with a recreation of the same pose (right)  that I quite like:

 Dreary, yet dreamy.

Looking forward to catching the Robert Frank exhibit at the Met!


Via: NPR.com

Thanks to Rob K. for the link to the DUMBO pics....

Twacy.org

Tracy Morgan's brilliance on NBC's 30 Rock is due to the glorious combination of  sharp writing and zany delivery. His daily musings and golden non-sequiturs must be evangelized on Twitter.  Tweet the word!

Thanks to Lina for the link!

Via: Twacy.org 

Mad Props

Effortlessly transporting viewers from modern day to the early sixties,  Mad Men's sublime set design is  unquestionably exquisite and one of the most lauded characteristics of the show.  EW has a delightful slide show featuring some of the most notable props used on set. Check out some of my faves from the photo gallery:

Via: EW.com 

Charts

Usually, charts are a wildly waving redflag for an impending snoozefest.  However, Good has been churning out instructive illustrations that are civic-minded and quite charming.  SEE???

Save the desert elephants!

Via:  Coolhunting.com
Photo Via: Flickr/Good

Black Wedge Boots: To splurge or save?

I have the snifflies this Saturday and engaging in the healing properties of online retail therapy/browsing. Came across these Lanvin wedge boots at Net-a-Porter:

Splurge?  Lanvin's $1555 Leather Wedge Boots

LOVE! But, I'll probably end up with these 80%20 boots:

Save? 80%20's $195 Jackie Hidden Wedge Pebble Grain Black Boots

Not a bad substitute, eh? The Lanvin's are sleeker and the leather looks buttery.  The 80%20 boots are more boho and casual.  Zappos had the "Jackie" on sale for $137 in a mugly putty hue.

Mad Men

Due to traveling and carousing, I've been "out of pocket" as they say in the biz (Tangent: What does that phrase really mean?),  and have missed the premieres and original airings of some of my shows, namely Top Chef, Project Runway, and, last but not least, Mad Men.  I've given up on Project Runway,  but I'm current with Top Chef, thanks to VOD. Additionally,  I managed to get my hands on  downloaded copies of all the back episodes of Mad Men, so I don't feel left out of casual conversation. (Shout out to Beershower for that!)

This current season of Mad Men is still as cryptic, moody and visually captivating as the last 2 seasons. Storylines are still strong. Nice to see that Peggy-kins is also getting some MAJOR action without getting herself preggers, albeit with Duck the divorced alkie??!!  Anyhoo, AMC is hosting a video contest to win a walk-on role for the best reinterpretation of a given character's  monologue. Check out this video entry that my darling friend, Sabina, produced--funny stuff.  Register and Vote!

Via: AMC

Wave War

Really dying for a Google Wave invite? Head over to E-bay... Bids are going as high as $5100, according to CSmonitor.com. Say what??!!!

No bids on this posting, as of 12:18 AM...

G'night Nerds.

Via: Twitter and CSmonitor.com

Beer Showers

It's a commonly known fact that getting a buzz BEFORE the soiree, instead of AT the soiree is waaaay more fun. And what's the best way to get that buzz?! A BEER SHOWER, of course! Not your style? Didn't think it was mine either, but check out the site, Beershower.org, and you just may change your tune (I'm partial to wheat-beers!). If you're already an experienced practitioner of the beer shower and well aware of the delights of a cold one during a hot one, then mosey on over to the site and post a hilarious quip!