One in the eyes of God is a majority. - Anonymous religious fanatic
I blogged the other day about a YouTube clip of the "Save the Earth" song from my favorite Godzilla film of all-time, Yoshimitsu Banno's formula-breaking 1971 masterpiece Gojira tai Hedorah (Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster). I love this film because it is unlike any other in the Godzilla canon. It has a European feel that is almost what I would call "artsy." It had hot young Japanese babes gyrating to psychedelic music in discos, hallucinatory scenes of people's faces tranforming into fish heads, Godzilla fire-propelling himself backwards (for the first time ever!). And, more importantly, it featured a little Japanese kid (Hiroyushi Kawase, who previously appeared in Gozilla Vs. Megallon) going "Bang! That's wild!" after his scientist father explained nuclear fission - a video clip that I never tired of using ad infinitum on my old public access show Atomic TV. I love this movie so much that I have at least 5 versions of it, including a Spanish-only dub because I wanted to hear what "Bang! That's wild!" soundly like en Espanol.
Little Hiro says "Bang! That's wild!"
An Inconvenient Truth: Smog Monster Rules
But that clearly disturbs some Godzilla purists. And there is no G-fan purer than John David Cawley, erstwhile rock star with Garage Sale, Berserk, the Nu-Beats, Order Now!, The Lumpies and (much to his shame) The Young Prufrock Alliance (who - besides everyone - can forget their magnum opus "I'm In a Study Group"?).
In fact, my affection for this film irked Big Dave Cawley (Founder, Godzilla Purists Preservation Society) so much that he left this message on my answering machine last night.
"Hey I was reading your blog today and, I'm sorry, but you walk in darkness! Godzilla Vs. the Smog Monster is, like, the worst one! What's wrong with you? Get with the program! Almost every other Godzilla film is better than that one. I mean, the only one that possibly comes close is Godzilla's Revenge, but, c'mon. Ugh. Smog Monster is so lame!
And I'll have you know that Toho's head Ishiro Honda told the director of Smog Monster, Yoshimitsu Banno, that he would NEVER direct another Godzilla film for him!
You're the only one I know who likes that one. C'mon man, THESE THINGS ARE IMPORTANT! You have to stop! You can't champion that film! They're so many other worthy contenders!"
I obviously struck a nerve. There are just certain lines you don't cross with Dave. Like The Clash. Cilantro. Frank Zappa. And Michael Bolton. The untouchables. Like the Israelis when it comes to talking to terrorists, these are non-negotiable subjects.
ADDENDUM: After posting this blog, I ran across an album cover that probably best explains Dave Cawley's Hedorah loathing. It's Frank Zappa's Sleep Dirt (aka Hot Rats III), and it features a creature looking very much like Hedorah on the cover. An unholy union?
I recently found these two small swans while treasure hunting for "supplies" for necklaces, collages, etc. Some time ago though, I was told that you should never have a "single swan". A pair of swans was the ideal. I was purchasing just one swan. She had another, but it was not for me. Later...within 6 months of this time, I found the perfect "masculine" swan. I filled this strong guy with candy hearts. This guy was strong but had heart too! I gave him to the Hubby for Valentines Day.
I heard on the news that boys are stilll being over prescribed Ritalin and such drugs. This is a beef of mine. Please lets let our boys be boys and give them some space to be and grow the way that they were meant to. I used to think girls and boys were the same...then I was blessed with a Daughter and then a Son. They are so beautifully different. : ) Thank God. Deux Amis...Two Friends...man and wife...sons and daughters....each bringing there gifts to the friendship.
Well that is it for today...The pretty pix is a tiny spot on my unorganized shelf. We had my nephew and his buddy come last week and I needed to clear the kitchen table and front living room... pronto. I look forward to having it "pretty" and organized fairly soon, but not yet.
I recently found these two small swans while treasure hunting for "supplies" for necklaces, collages, etc. Some time ago though, I was told that you should never have a "single swan". A pair of swans was the ideal. I was purchasing just one swan. She had another, but it was not for me. Later...within 6 months of this time, I found the perfect "masculine" swan. I filled this strong guy with candy hearts. This guy was strong but had heart too! I gave him to the Hubby for Valentines Day.
I heard on the news that boys are stilll being over prescribed Ritalin and such drugs. This is a beef of mine. Please lets let our boys be boys and give them some space to be and grow the way that they were meant to. I used to think girls and boys were the same...then I was blessed with a Daughter and then a Son. They are so beautifully different. : ) Thank God. Deux Amis...Two Friends...man and wife...sons and daughters....each bringing there gifts to the friendship.
Well that is it for today...The pretty pix is a tiny spot on my unorganized shelf. We had my nephew and his buddy come last week and I needed to clear the kitchen table and front living room... pronto. I look forward to having it "pretty" and organized fairly soon, but not yet.
I hope that everyone had a great weekend. We actually got away! We left early Saturday a.m. for Michigan. We made it to my sisters' about hmmm, well, later than we hoped. Two of my sisters live in the same town with their families as well as our Mom! It was a very fun afternoon! First we went over to my Mom's new condo to check it out! I think she has owned it for only 6 months. My Brother-In Laws (Brothers) and my sisters ...EVERYONE helped get her place perfect! They actually gutted the place! It looks FABULOUS! She had a wonderful condo before but was wanting a smaller place. Now she has a PETIT MANOIR! She has chosen wonderful lively colors and this makes her new home really cosmopolitan. What! You wonder where the pix are? The Hubby did not realize that battery life is used up quickly when you use the camera as a photo album. We should have had our son take pictures for us!! He has a brand spankin new camera! It is a honey!!! EOS 30D with a wide angle lense. Doug really loves photography. Maybe he will start putting up some of his work on his site. He took a lot of pix of some boat races they were having on the St.Clair River. The boats could be heard where ever we went! I did not actually see them... but Doug has some pictures. He also took pictures of us playing some new game which was loads of FUN~FUN~FUN~!!! I think it was called blongo ball, or Scottish bowling....I am told that it goes by many different names and many different price points! My sister was in a hurry and went for the high end! Thanks Jayne...it is really, really fun! I will post some pictures of it all! Sunday was a big event! My father-In Laws' Birthday!!! Of course we were late! We were supposed to leave at 1, allowing plenty of time to get there, But we take too long saying goodbye. Then we needed gas, and more unexpected problems! There is never enough time in the day to visit with family! We had a wonderful time on our very Petit Holiday! Hugs to you all in Michigan AND Congratulations Maureen and Eric!!! ~~~~Just engaged~~~~ : )
I hope that everyone had a great weekend. We actually got away! We left early Saturday a.m. for Michigan. We made it to my sisters' about hmmm, well, later than we hoped. Two of my sisters live in the same town with their families as well as our Mom! It was a very fun afternoon! First we went over to my Mom's new condo to check it out! I think she has owned it for only 6 months. My Brother-In Laws (Brothers) and my sisters ...EVERYONE helped get her place perfect! They actually gutted the place! It looks FABULOUS! She had a wonderful condo before but was wanting a smaller place. Now she has a PETIT MANOIR! She has chosen wonderful lively colors and this makes her new home really cosmopolitan. What! You wonder where the pix are? The Hubby did not realize that battery life is used up quickly when you use the camera as a photo album. We should have had our son take pictures for us!! He has a brand spankin new camera! It is a honey!!! EOS 30D with a wide angle lense. Doug really loves photography. Maybe he will start putting up some of his work on his site. He took a lot of pix of some boat races they were having on the St.Clair River. The boats could be heard where ever we went! I did not actually see them... but Doug has some pictures. He also took pictures of us playing some new game which was loads of FUN~FUN~FUN~!!! I think it was called blongo ball, or Scottish bowling....I am told that it goes by many different names and many different price points! My sister was in a hurry and went for the high end! Thanks Jayne...it is really, really fun! I will post some pictures of it all! Sunday was a big event! My father-In Laws' Birthday!!! Of course we were late! We were supposed to leave at 1, allowing plenty of time to get there, But we take too long saying goodbye. Then we needed gas, and more unexpected problems! There is never enough time in the day to visit with family! We had a wonderful time on our very Petit Holiday! Hugs to you all in Michigan AND Congratulations Maureen and Eric!!! ~~~~Just engaged~~~~ : )
I like big butts and I cannot lie. - Sir Mixalot, "Baby Hath Back"
Like Sir Mixalot, I cannot lie about a love I have that darest not speak its name. Well, not in front of my girlfriend, anyway. Blame it on Rio, or more specifically on Brazilian bombshell Keity Ines.
Keity Ines defines the form
Or blame it on her neighbor, comely Colombian cutie Lucia Tovar.
Lucia Tovar rests her case
Or blame it on rudely robust Romanian pornstar Sandra Romaine.
Sandra Romaine shows off her assets
Or blame it on any number of well-rounded women whose pear-shaped bottoms (perhaps definitively defined in the textbook photo below) have inspired me to take pen to paper and write these lines in tribute to their haunty haunches. For these women's forms give substance to the idea that there may be a divine designer who shapes our "ends" (rough hew them though we may).
Herein is my poem about the pear-shaped bottom and why it appeals to the baser instincts of men like me who slavishly follow the biological imperatives of their genetic code. For like Andrew Marvel, I believe a woman's beauty is equal to the sum of her parts. But some parts are more equal than others.
THE PEAR: An Old School Ode Upon a Cute Bottom by T. S. Warner
PART I:THE INVOCATION
I am The Dreamer who dreams The Dream I am The Weaver who weaves what is with what it seems I am The Poet whose lofty thoughts would take wing Invoke me, milady, and to thy wonders will I sing
PART II:THE FRUIT OF THE MATTER
I would like to say that I fell in love With the first glance of your fair face But in truth your wonder was revealed to me As was the Nightengale to Keats, perched in a tree But my bough bore fruit, a most perfect pear I mean, my lady, your lovely derriere
PART III: THE DEVIL MADE ME DO IT
Like Eve you tempted me to taste forbidden fruit And with hungry eyes I consumed you to the core And found not, like Adam, a rotten apple But a glutton's craving for yet more
PART IV: SHE BLINDED ME WITH SCIENCE
For every action there's an equal and opposite reaction States Mr. Newton's Third Law of Motion Thus the hypothesis of your undulating perfection Finds its proof in my corresponding emotion
Yet the buoyancy of your ripened mounds Would cause Newton to question his own sanity For he tells us an apple is inclined towards the ground While your hanging fruit defies gravity
PART V: AVON CALLING
So if, as the Bard of Avon claims A divine hand shapes our ends Then I'll devoutly worship yours And cry to the Heavens, "Amen!"
PART VI: IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME
Yes gladly would I forsake the world for you, mon amour As did the Lotus-Eaters, who vowed to sail no more Content to worship a magic fruit the remainder of their days So I remain entranced by your soft-skinned pear in its hypnotic sway
After watching the Live Earth telecast, I ran across this techno remix of "Save the Earth" from my favorite Godzilla movie, Yoshimitsu Banno's 1971 magnum opus GOJIRA TAI HEDORA (aka GODZILLA VS. HEDORAH and GODZILLA VS. THE SMOG MONSTER). Once again, Godzilla proves his timeless relevance!
Of course you can't improve on the psychedelic original:
Saturday, July 21. We worm our way up Mt. Royal to see Artscape proper, our mission to see the Maryland Film Festival Films-in-a-Tent, the Laure Drougoul-curated Ceci n'est pas exhibit Foodcourt performers (since Amy hasn't seen them), MICA's Decker Gallery and Fox buildings to see the the art displayed there.
Mission was accomplished. But the fun was getting there. Here are my remaining pix from Artscape 2007.
Ashes to ashes, sawdust to sawdust. Outside the Lyric.
The Tomb of the Unknown Artist. Wakes held nightly at the Mt. Royal Tavern
Mission Statement for all artists. It's all about the Benjamins! Become an Artist and never work again!
The Nay-Saying Neo-Cons Kiosk
Art without wine is like sex without the masks. Beautiful Babs and friend get fortified with Sangria
Rugrats try to turn Squirrel Statue into roadkill
Art solves the parking problem
Chicks love phallic monoliths
Arty combo rocks out in the Food Court
Senior Moment: Amy spaces out in front of an exhibit in the Fox Building
My impression of the Bengies Drive-In during a meteor storm
Amy interacts with art
Who Needs Cable?: Video Installation at Fox Building
Frosted Strawberry Pop Tart face video installation
"Whatever you do, don't look down!": Chris the Plumber of Jensen Plumbing talks his girlfriend Shannon through a Spot-a-Pot plumbing crisis in the Artscape Food Court
My friend Steve Intlekofer turned me on to two books for which I'm eternally grateful. One was Klaus Kinski's fascinating autobiography, Kinski Uncut, a brisk read whose 322 pages are filled with the horny Hun's accounts of (by my meticulous count) 135 documented sexual conquests - from Inge on page 39 to Carmen, Moravia and Chloe on page 320. (And that's not including alleged trysts with his mom and daughter Nadia!)
The other was Luigi Serafini's Codex Seraphinanus (first published in 1981, first American printing 1983), a 190-page book that was written entirely in an unrecognizable language and illustrated with the most bizarre images this side of M.C. Esher or Hieronymous Bosch. It is the very definition of "curi-oddity." According to Wikipedia, "The Codex Seraphinianus is a book written and illustrated by the Italian architect and industrial designer Luigi Serafini during thirty months, from 1976 to 1978...the book...appears to be a visual encyclopedia of an unknown world, written in one of its languages, an incomprehensible (at least for us) alphabetic writing." Another source claims that "Seraphinianus" is an acronym for Strange and Extraordinary Representations of Animals and Plants and Hellish Incarnations of Normal Items from the Annals of Naturalist/U nnaturalist Luigi Serafini.
Steve actually owned this amazing book (as did another friend/colleague/collector of rarities, Marc Sober). Luckily for me, the library where I work owns this exhorbitantly priced rarity (used copies of which go for $300 and upwards on eBAY to $4,000 for a publisher's First Edition).
I had almost forgotten about this madcap manuscript until my artist friend Sook stopped by work the other day and, given that she is always enthusiastic about discovering new wonders, I put the book before her and asked her if she had ever heard of it before. She was fascinated by it, especially by Serafini's imaginary language in which the entire book is written, and said she was going to try and incorporate its themes into her paintings.
The Codex’s only real precursor in terms of invented languages is The Voynich Manuscript, which was allegedly discovered by Polish book collector Wilfrid M. Voynich in a wooden chest at an Italian Jesuit college in 1912. According to an article in the magazine The Believer, the profusely illustrated manuscript was worked on by top code-breakers during World War II who were unable to fathom it.
"They failed. It’s never been deciphered. Theories on its origin and significance abound, including the theory that the manuscript is a fraud perpetrated by Voynich himself, but the most popular and conclusive theory attributes the work to Roger Bacon, the medieval Franciscan friar who, in his Letter Concerning the Marvelous Power of Art and Nature and the Nullity of Magic, noted that “certain persons have achieved concealment by means of letters not then used by their own race or others but arbitrarily invented by themselves."
SOLVE THE CODEX
The Website Codex Seraphinianus Solved claims to have solved the mystery by consulting various Rosetta Stone language CDs:
The writing system used in his book appears to be modelled on ordinary Western-style writing systems, but with letters that curve into each other in patterns that cryptologists and linguists have been unable to break.
However, the number system used for numbering the pages has been cracked by a Bulgarian linguist, Ivan Derzhanski of Sofia, Bulgaria ( his web page may be seen at http://www.math.bas.bg/~iad/serafin.html ).
SEE THE CODEX
Can't afford to drop $300-$4,000 for Codex Seraphinianus? Well, you don't have to. Somebody named cottoncandyhammer uploaded scans of the entire book to Flickr:
Or check it out of your local library, if applicable. Luckily, it's owned by a number of academic libraries; I won't name them here, because I don't want it to go on "permanent loan."
DANCE THE CODEX
In 2003, I saw the Lyon Opera Ballet perform a surrealist ballet based on the CODEX SERAPHINANUS at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. It was the greatest thing I ever saw - like Cirque de Soleil choreograped by Salvador Dali based on designs by Timothy Leary! It was called TRICODEX and was created by French choreographer Phillipe Decoufle, who had previously tackled Luigi Serafini's creations two earlier dance performances, Codex and Decodex. It had people dancing on stilts and trampolines - and the mind-blowing costumes! I remember being particularly taken by Carrot Bottom (the polar opposite of ginger comedian Carrot Top, I suppose), a half woman/half carrot creature. Though critics pointed out that it didn't have as much dancing as one would expect from a ballet company, that was probably because of the zany Dr. Seuss-like costumes and devices the dancers were required to wear and navigate around. I wish a had an all-region DVD players so I could see the French PAL DVD of these performances. Luckily there are some YouTube and other clips posted on the Internet.
This is the description of the performance from CLC Productions' 2005 French DVD release of Tricodex:
Tricodex is the fourth step in a process going back almost 20 years. The trigger was the Codex Seraphinus, an encyclopaedia of an imaginary world, written in an unknown language but, fortunately, copiously illustrated.
Anyway, here is some more information on the book and its author, Luigi Serafini.
THE UNOFFICIAL CODEX SERAPHINIANUS WEB SITE This web site is dedicated to giving information (what little there is) on the weirdest book in the world, the CODEX SERAPHINIANUS.
I love bieng in this little walk in closet. I have the window to the left of the chair, you can see the light source shining a little bit. A new window is due in, maybe it will come today? I can open it if I want to. I also have all of these shelves!!!! AND MORE TO COME!!! My Hubby feels I will need them, and he is proabably right.
The above is the view I have when I enter the petite room. Yes, that is a bare light bulb dangling from the ceiling. I have not had time to re-paint the petite chandelier yet. I hope I can get the aqua drops done without any amethyst left on it. I love aqua drops on chandeliers.
I love this CHAIR! I wish I had taken the before shot. I encourage anyone who is thinking about color OR needs a boost to paint with a little shot of color!
here you can see the closet before our work. I must let you know that as of this writing I now have my things QUICKLY, I repeat QUICKLY, put into this room! I have worked for a short time here the other day! It was wonderful! I will take more pictures when I get settled in the room. This will be after I get everything out to those of you who are patiently waiting for collages, necklaces, and chandeliers, I also need to update my etsy shop...poor "little shop around the corner" : ( Hobbes...poor sweet boy. The Cute roofers came to install a new gutter early in the A.M. They took us all by surprise! Hobbes took off for the basement. This is a picture of him thinking that they were gone...but they were still here he found out. He high tailed it for the basement again!
I love bieng in this little walk in closet. I have the window to the left of the chair, you can see the light source shining a little bit. A new window is due in, maybe it will come today? I can open it if I want to. I also have all of these shelves!!!! AND MORE TO COME!!! My Hubby feels I will need them, and he is proabably right.
The above is the view I have when I enter the petite room. Yes, that is a bare light bulb dangling from the ceiling. I have not had time to re-paint the petite chandelier yet. I hope I can get the aqua drops done without any amethyst left on it. I love aqua drops on chandeliers.
I love this CHAIR! I wish I had taken the before shot. I encourage anyone who is thinking about color OR needs a boost to paint with a little shot of color!
here you can see the closet before our work. I must let you know that as of this writing I now have my things QUICKLY, I repeat QUICKLY, put into this room! I have worked for a short time here the other day! It was wonderful! I will take more pictures when I get settled in the room. This will be after I get everything out to those of you who are patiently waiting for collages, necklaces, and chandeliers, I also need to update my etsy shop...poor "little shop around the corner" : ( Hobbes...poor sweet boy. The Cute roofers came to install a new gutter early in the A.M. They took us all by surprise! Hobbes took off for the basement. This is a picture of him thinking that they were gone...but they were still here he found out. He high tailed it for the basement again!
I blogged the other day about a YouTube clip of the "Save the Earth" song from my favorite Godzilla film of all-time, Yoshimitsu Banno's formula-breaking 1971 masterpiece Gojira tai Hedorah (Godzilla Vs. The Smog Monster). I love this film because it is unlike any other in the Godzilla canon. It has a European feel that is almost what I would call "artsy." It had hot young Japanese babes gyrating to psychedelic music in discos, hallucinatory scenes of people's faces tranforming into fish heads, Godzilla fire-propelling himself backwards (for the first time ever!). And, more importantly, it featured a little Japanese kid (Hiroyushi Kawase, who previously appeared in Gozilla Vs. Megallon) going "Bang! That's wild!" after his scientist father explained nuclear fission - a video clip that I never tired of using ad infinitum on my old public access show Atomic TV. I love this movie so much that I have at least 5 versions of it, including a Spanish-only dub because I wanted to hear what "Bang! That's wild!" soundly like en Espanol.
