Imagining a car-free NYC

All in jest, but the idea isn't half-bad. 

Click on the pic below to read the NYTimes Op-Ed.

The complete works of my favorite artist, Robert Rauschenberg, at the Gagosian

"He was fantastic, a thriller, one who inspired generations of other artists ...to be promiscuous in their approach to art and life but also to be formally exacting, to be cool-eyed in their thinking but morally tender"  


Click HERE to see the NYTimes article about the Gagosian exhibit, on display until 12/18/10.

a quote that's been on my mind...

Stop thinking that this is all there is...Realize that for every ongoing war and religious outrage and environmental devastation and bogus Iraqi attack plan, there are a thousand counterbalancing acts of staggering generosity and humanity and art and beauty happening all over the world, right now, on a breathtaking scale, from flower box to cathedral...Resist the temptation to drown in fatalism, to shake your head and sigh and just throw in the karmic towel...Realize that this is the perfect moment to change the energy of the world, to step right up and crank your personal volume; right when it all seems dark and bitter and offensive and acrimonious and conflicted and bilious...there's your opening. Remember magic. And, finally, believe you are part of a groundswell, a resistance, a seemingly small but actually very, very large impending karmic overhaul, a great shift, the beginning of something important and potent and unstoppable.

--Mark Morford

Vegetarian Thanksgiving

I know its not quite Thanksgiving yet, but I couldn't resist--how delish do these recipes look?!

Jackson Hotel by Lynda Hull : The Poetry Foundation [poem] : Find Poems and Poets. Discover Poetry.

this poem just broke my heart a little bit!

Jackson Hotel

BY LYNDA HULL

Sometimes after hours of wine I can almost see

the night gliding in low off the harbor

down the long avenues of shop windows

past mannequins, perfect in their gestures.

I leave some water steaming on the gas ring

and sometimes I can slip from my body,

almost find the single word to prevent evenings

that absolve nothing, a winter lived alone

and cold. Rooms where you somehow marry

the losses of strangers that tremble

on the walls like the hands

of the dancer next door, luminous

with Methedrine, she taps walls for hours

murmuring about the silver she swears

lines the building, the hallways

where each night drunks stammer their

usual rosary until they come to rest

beneath the tarnished numbers, the bulbs

that star each ceiling.

I must tell you I am afraid to sit here

losing myself to the hour’s slow erasure

until I know myself only by this cold weight,

this hand on my lap, palm up.

I want to still the dancer’s hands

in mine, to talk about forgiveness

and what we leave behind—faces

and cities, the small emergencies

of nights. I say nothing, but

leaning on the sill, I watch her leave

at that moment

when the first taxis start rolling

to the lights of Chinatown, powered

by sad and human desire. I watch her fade

down the street until she’s a smudge,

violent in the circle of my breath. A figure

so small I could cup her in my hands.

"Publics and Counterpublic" by Michael Warner (1958)

very interesting essay on the meaning of "the public," a term that is constantly reinterpreted during our internet/media age.

seems pretty relevant, considering that i'm writing this blog, and you're reading it...

http://muse.jhu.edu.ezproxy.bowdoin.edu/journals/public_culture/v014/14.1warner.html

A feast with one goat, one table and one oven

This sort of gastronomic event is on my bucket list. What a beautiful concept.

LUMENHAUS: Virginia Tech's creation that won the 2010 Solar Decathlon Europe

AWESOME house. Click on this picture of the Lumenhaus to be taken to an interactive link and tour of the home:

Graveside Oration

Our late friend hated blue skies,
Bible-quoting preachers,
Politicians kissing babies,
Women who are all sweetness.

He liked drunks in church,
Nudists playing volleyball,
Stray dogs making friends,
Birds singing of fair weather as they crap.

--Charles Simic (as seen in The Paris Review, Spring 2010)

I haven't posted a poem in a while...

Restlessness

Walking side-by-side,

the travelers shine,

moonlit and new at the start

of their journey

through the barren expanse.

Like two pearls

glinting in the light,

yellow-white.

The bright of their craniums

contrasting the slate-

gray and black patches

that paint the desert floor

blotchy during the small hours.

Only the sands and cacti

feel the throbbing

in their chests, the beating

that hovers above their hearts

like a flock of buzzards hunting.

Never will the beasts land.


--Me.

lovely short film: Words By Everynone

WORDS from Everynone on Vimeo.

An Article About Today's 20-Somethings

What Is It About 20-Somethings?
Robert Marant Henig for the NYTimes

We are purpose-driven more than financially driven!

Click HERE to watch this video

A map of religiosity

This Gallup Poll MAP brings many, many questions to mind, such as the correlation between religion and fundamentalism, conservatism, government corruption, poverty, etc...

"Tell Barack Obama the Truth--The Whole Truth": James Hansen's words of advice on how to resolve the issue of climate change

I agree with a lot of Dr. Hansen's points. He emphasizes 4th generation nuclear, cap and dividend, renewable energy development, appliance efficiency and a revamping of the electric grid.

http://www.columbia.edu/~jeh1/mailings/2008/20081121_Obama.pdf

and his thoughts on the action Obama has taken (or not taken) thus far:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-james-hansen/obamas-second-chance-on-c_b_525567.html

Japanese architects Sejima and Nishizawa win 2010 Pritzker Prize

kazuyo sejima (right) and ryue nishizawa (left) 

click HERE to see some of their work

frigid and raw, but awesome

this house looks like something Louis Kahn would have loved

click this link to see the rest of the house.

High speed Rail

Using high speed railways could GREATLY help us cut down on our CO2 emissions by allowing Americans to take trains instead of flying on shorter trips between cities. Obama has invested $8 billion to creating more high speed railways, but this Op-Ed writer argues we need more funds if we're going to do it right.

Mobile, AL

an aerial view of one of my favorite places in the world

"AXOLOTL" by Julio Cortazar

Cortazar is one of my favorite latino authors. He was from Argentina and wrote in the magical realism style throughout the second half of the 20th century. He is often compared to the Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez, another one of favorite writers. Click on the pick of the axolotl to read the story translated in English.

COFFEE KISS

Christiane Amanpour

She is my hero.

men on the moon?

Obama wants to send robots into space instead of humans in order to cut costs and ensure human safety. But I agree wholeheartedly with Seth Shostak, the senior astronomer at the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California when he says we need a new frontier and human beings are going to have to get use to the idea of forming lasting and functional communities in space, especially considering the ephemerality of our existence on earth. 


passing on the video that made the phrase "one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind" famous.

A better obituary for Salinger

My brother, Christopher Cox, wrote this for the online magazine, Obit. It is one of the few obituaries that does justice to J.D. Salinger's life and work. Click on the picture of Salinger to check it out.

sunday, in the library. wishing i was somewhere else

Grandma's got it right

New Jersey Grandma Disgusted by Jersey Shore - Watch more Funny Videos

Forgotten Congo

Nicholas Kristof wrote an opinion piece regarding the ethnic conflict and the atrocities that continue to transpire today in the Congo, especially in terms of violence against women. Though the world is currently focusing on aiding those in Haiti, Kristof urges the international community to remember that the Congo can not be forgotten.

Calvin's Christmas List

Cass McCombs - You Saved My Life

one of my favorite songs by Cass McCombs, a real soul melody.

Coldplay - Strawberry Swing - Official Music Video (HQ)

I've always had a softspot for Coldplay, and I'm not ashamed of it. This is the music video to one of my favorite Coldplay songs.
Great video, great song.

PLACES TO GO IN 2010

(CLICK ON THE APPLE)

IMPROVED STOP SIGNS

I've posted some of these gems below, but if you're hungry for more:

Animal Collective Music Video: "Brother Sport"

as usual, totally trippy and pretty awesome.

http://pitchfork.com/tv/#/musicvideo/3946-animal-collective-brother-sport-domino