i like the lou grant show. there, i said it. i haven’t gotten to see it since i was a kid, and it’s not on dvd. that show made me want to be, not a journalist, but a newspaper man. now itunes has the show and i watched the first episode. it is extremely dated, but still an excellent watch.
like most of the things i love, it inspires questions: why can’t shows look like that anymore? why can’t shows have that much quiet in them anymore? why do i love ed asner so much?
no really, why DO i love ed asner so much? it’s as if i have a “you love ed asner” implant in my brain. the love is real, but i don’t entirely believe it.
anyway, this is a screen capture of one of the reporters digging up information, following a lead to bust open a law enforcement scandal. this one shot contains at least six items from days gone by:
1. typewriter
2. ancient desktop terminal
3. awesomely ernestine head set
4. ye olde neck-crane assistant
5. bona fide rolly roladex
6. INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER!!
having mentioned before what i refer to as my “perverse, white-knuckled humility,” regarding accomplishments of any kind, i’d like to take a moment also to speak of the seemingly widespread inability to accept compliments.
a friend mentioned to me recently that when someone tells me they like my work, “shut up” might not be a a gracious or appropriate response. i am genuinely enthusiastic about other people, making sure i tell them how i feel, and have come to realize that i’m not the only one who has a hard time accepting that kind of attention. (k…and b…i’m talking to YOU.)
we could get into all kinds of reasons and therapize all day long, but i came across this post on lifehack that deals with some concrete yet nurturing list of compliment-accepting techniques. here’s a snippet from the intro:
Think of the good we might do ourselves by easily accepting every compliment that’s offered us, even if we’re not entirely sure the person complimenting us is totally earnest. Instead of undermining our self-confidence, we would feed it. Instead of denigrating our achievements, we would promote them. And instead of tearing down relationships, we would strengthen them. A compliment is, after all, a kind of gift, and turning down a gift insults the person giving it, suggesting that you don’t value them as highly as they value (soon to be “valuedâ€) you.
it’s a great read and, even better, completely actionable. clicky. <via>
so much of what i love about the muppets is the anarchy beneath the plush. here is a perfect example.
sure, ernie irritating bert is nothing new. dancing sheep? yes, totally awesome but also not out of the ordinary. it’s when the song really picks up and the manic joy is then turned on bert who really hasn’t done anything to deserve it that makes me laugh really hard.
my favorite lyric happens at 1:43….but the best thing ever is the final shot.
before i get into the meat of this post, i need to tell you that i don’t like talking about my flair. i do like to share good ideas and glorify the work of others and i even like sharing photos of the things i make.
what i have a lot of trouble with is talking about cool neat things that happen to me along the way. it’s a perverse, white-knuckled humility that i haven’t figured out entirely, but those that are close to me have done everything short of attacking me physically to shake me out of this weird self-consciousness. so, here i take a deep breath and share a couple neat things:
i’ve mentioned kristen rask, owner of schmancy and curator of plush you here before. she’s one of those people who’s teaching me about the value of reasonable amounts of pride. a smart woman, a funny woman, a taker of no crap, kristen is one my heroes. (she did kick me in the shin once, but i totally deserved it.) anyway, kristen invited me to an interview for her constantly inspiring plushyou! blog and she posted that interview today.
the other neat thing is that i have a tutorial coming out in issue 06 of craft magazine. if you subscribe, you have it already but for everyone else, it hits news stands on feb 5. it’s the longest tutorial i’ve written and i think it’s pretty cool. it isn’t needle felting related but teaches you how to make hand-sewn plush monsters. the kind of unbelievably cool part is that the craft folks have seen fit to put my monsters on the cover of that magazine. i don’t have a good shot of the cover but the monsters look like this:
of course, i’m completely amazed.
and now you know what’s up in my neck of the woods. and now i need to have a lie down.
just because i expected exactly what i got from the state of the union speech last night doesn’t make it any less painful.
my two favorite parts:
One year ago, our enemies were succeeding in their efforts to plunge Iraq into chaos, so we reviewed our strategy and changed course.
We launched a surge of American forces into Iraq.
so, launch of american forces into iraq now = change.
and
“So tonight, with confidence in freedom’s power…”
i like this one because its meaninglessness begs to be continued on in marx brothers format. like this:
“so tonight, with confidence in freedom’s power, and power in freedom’s confidence…”
to keep from a total lapse into nihilism, i bring you this bit of fantastic from “the best little whorehouse in texas.” it’s a great satire on political ca-ca, but it also features charles durning….DANCING. it’s worth watching all the way through because durning makes a ton of great little acting choices.
(if you are one of those “why do 3 minute microwave burritos take so long?” type of people, at least watch from 4:16. that’s when the dancing AND prancing really build up. but believe me, those of us watching all the way through are getting so much more.)
and finally, now that the mood is slightly elevated, try some bona fide analysis. clicky.
taken at one of the ever-expanding malls in lynwood, wa. i had to pick someone up there and i got so dazed that when i saw this sign, i had to rub my eyes to make sure i was reading it correctly.
anybody want to come watch “they live” with me tonight?
not a lover of most social networking systems, facebook has always been the one to make me itch the most. i don’t like the feeling i get while using it…maybe it’s because i’ve always been something of a huac fetishist: i don’t want anybody creating databases linking me up to every friend, coworker, fellow alumni, etc., complete with dates and organization names and all. not to mention a system where i can’t delete my account…EVER. sure, i can “disable” it but it’s still there, mocking me. so, for me, that’s bad enough.
and then you get this:
from gigaom: “…this is a privacy disaster waiting to happen. The javascript on the Fandango site pops up a little screen which asks if you want to publish the information on Facebook. If you say no, your friends won’t see the information, but apparently Facebook still receives it. This means that if you are a Facebook member, Facebook will know what you are doing on each of their partner sites. And there is no way for you to opt out of that…” (clicky.)
from cory doctorow (on informationweek.com): “…If there was any doubt about Facebook’s lack of qualification to displace the Internet with a benevolent dictatorship/walled garden, it was removed when Facebook unveiled its new advertising campaign. Now, Facebook will allow its advertisers to use the profile pictures of Facebook users to advertise their products, without permission or compensation. Even if you’re the kind of person who likes the sound of a benevolent dictatorship this clearly isn’t one…” (clicky.)
from brainsturbator: “…it’s not an exaggeration to say that there are very real ties between Facebook and CIA—and there’s a whole covert landscape of semi-legal databases, companies selling private information, and the new horizon of computer-driven “Data Miningâ€. ” (clicky.)
so i know that “privacy” and “freedom” and “democracy” are concepts that have all but choked on their last breaths of life, but i’m dumping facebook. so there.
