and you will know us by the trail of taco meat's Friends

Username:	Password:
Forgot your password?	Remember Me

Am I the only one who thought the new Batman was pretty average? Long, boring, repetitive, confusing? Some weird plot holes? Heath Ledger was good, but only had a handful of scenes where he was allowed enough time to really dig in. Maggie Gyllenhaal wasn't a big improvement on Katie Holmes, either. Christian Bale was OK.

I don't know. I think I liked it.

Pitchfork Music Festival 2008
Pitchfork is streaming this year's festival for free right here. Jarvis Cocker and Animal Collective tonight, Spiritualized, Dinosaur Jr., and Spoon tomorrow. As it's raining here in Chicago this weekend, no better way to see the show. Only wish I'd logged on last night to see Public Enemy.

Two units in my building were recently broken into, during the middle of the day. I don't know what was stolen exactly, but the theft was "extensive" according to the bulletin they just posted. I've always felt, perhaps naively, that my building is secure, what with the 24 hour security guard and cameras monitoring all access points. Unless someone were to time things just right when they knew the security guard wasn't paying close attention, forced entry into the building would be obvious. The easiest way in would be to just sneak in an open door when nobody is looking. Or, perhaps just walk right in an open door unassumingly right on front of security or other residents. We have a set of doors in the back that are mainly used for moving and deliveries, so they're occasionally propped open. This is how he got in - seemingly, the doors were already open and he just walked right through. There's a security camera focused squarely on these doors, so we have pictures of the perpetrator which they've posted. Here's the crazy part, though... On his way in, this fucker posed as a blind man, and walked through the open doors wearing sunglasses and using a white cane. He was able to see just fine as he hurried out.

wtf?

I'm not sure of the exact circumstances. My guess is that maybe somebody was moving in/out or some maintenance was being taken care of, so these doors were propped open. The doors to the elevators may have been propped open as well, allowing full access to the building. He was probably keeping an eye on the situation, waiting for a moment when nobody was around. As for the blind act, it must have been an attempt to seem innocent or not arouse suspicion. I'm guessing security didn't even see him walk in. In the middle of the day, the front desk gets a lot of action - deliveries, building issues, etc., so it's not like someone is always focused on the camera feed. Once inside, two units across the hall from each other were forced into. Nobody was home.

crazy.

Maybe I should pick up a door alarm type thing.

It's Official
Dropped off the deposit on our next apartment this morning. We have > thirty days to pack everything up and move ...two blocks away. This is an upgrade though. I snuck in and took some pics of the empty space:

Building facade

Facade Close-Up

( New on the Inside )

Jealousing over the folks who are IMAXing the Dark Knight today. buh.
I was not 'on it' enough. But it's fine. By the time I go, there will probably be no lines, and I won't be crammed next to a bunch of stinkin people. So there!
/secretly still sulking

Also not on it enough? Missing the rock at the Hammer. After being wowed by Lautner, particularly the Marbrisa house (boy would I love to live there!), we went to dinner. By the time we got back, the line was wrapped around the block to get in to see Duke Spirit and IO Echo! Craziness! But we had an excellent time anyway, staring at a brick wall. No, really.
And: renewed resolve to go to Urasawa. Or Japan. ha

Friday's list of amazing:
-Joss Whedon's new thing. I was never a Buffy fan, but I think Firefly sold me.
-Legos are actually more than just a little amazing.
-I would probably add TDK, but uhm. yeh, see comment above.

Wow
I guess I should start off by saying that whatever reservations I had about The Dark Knight, I'd totally forgotten about them by the end of the show. In fact, when it was over, there was little I could do but sit in awe of what just happened. I can see, now, why this movie is generating the hype that it is. Yes, the music is outstanding. Yes, the story is that good. Yes, the performances of Oldman, Eckhart, and Bale are all great. But the real reason the movie succeeds is Heath Ledger. His Joker was mesmerizing. When he's not on the screen, you want him to be there. And when he finally arrives, he makes you feel uneasy about your choice. He's terrifying. The character is at least on par with Hannibal Lecter, and I don't say that lightly. The Joker was written and acted perfectly. He's not out for power, or money, or revenge; he simply wants to create chaos in a city that doesn't want to acknowledge that chaos exists. And when he makes threats, he makes you feel scared for the people on screen, because you know that whatever he's said, the outcome will be much, much worse.

Everybody has their favorite movies and we all create our rankings as we go along, but for me--AND MAYBE ONLY ME--this movie is better than The Empire Strikes Back. It's one of those movies that people will ask you if you've seen when going down the list of great dramas. You should probably do what you need to do to be able to answer 'yes' to that question.

Current Mood: impressed

=
work = exhausting. those people maintain a sense of hope for the most egregious criminal offenders in our society, yet that can't suspend judgment of one another, and they make firm decisions about each others' defective characters every fucking day. i am tired of that shit. and you know what? i'm gonna write a memo about offering respect, hope and warmth in the work place. i'm gonna offer praise and love to every one of those assholes. seriously.

my kids = challenging. constantly. i'm taking my parenting cues exclusively from brangelina these days, if you're keeping track. so far i'm not keeping up, but i have hope for tomorrow.

my house (and things generally) = messy

my tv watching = delicious avoidance of all things real

!!!!

Current Mood: excited

We have an fun + quick exhibition coming up soon!

On Saturday, July 19, 2008 Golden Age will be hosting:

PDF

A show of commissioned works opening simultaneously around the world.

For the PDF show, the curators, whyandwherefore. com,
..
asked each of the artists to respond to their medium,
PDFsâ€”specifically how digital work can be infinitely and exactly
reproduced.

Each was also invited to interrogate the idea of
worldwide, collective actionâ€”connected to the simultaneous,
international openings.

With work by Fia BackstrÃ¶m, Bozidar Brazda, Brian Clifton, Paul
Ramirez Jonas, Rachel Mason, Sean Raspet, Dexter Sinister and Jordan
Wolfson.

Venues as of July 14:

Atkinson Space, Fayetteville, Arkansas, USA

Bastard, Oslo, Norway

Brown Gallery, London, UK

La Casa Encendida, Madrid, Spain

Circus Gallery, Los Angeles, California, USA

Golden Age, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Hiromi Yoshii Gallery, Osaka, Japan

Jessica Silverman Gallery, San Francisco, California, USA

Galleri Loyal, Stockholm, Sweden

Portland Institute for Contemporary Art, Portland, Oregon, USA

Placeholder Gallery, Newhall, CA

Showroom, Hamburg, Germany; Leipzig, Germany; Zurich, Switzerland

Snug Harbor Cultural Center, Staten Island, New York City, USA

Vox Populi, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA

Y Gallery, Queens, New York City, USA

-----

GOLDEN AGE

1744 W 18TH ST.

CHICAGO, IL 60608

312.850.

2574

GOLDENAGESTORE. COM <..void(0);.

r{}>

Music.
i wish the wrens would tour. i miss them.

I biked to work today and forgot to bring jeans to change into, so now I'm wearing the shorts I biked in with. Luckily, shorts are acceptable attire per our dress code, but I still feel kinda naked and my legs are cold.

The Matt is famous again
The IGN Game Scoop! team read another one of The Matt's e-mails. You can skip directly to the end, because it's the last thing they read:

http://games.ign.com/articles/888/888349p1.html

The Matt is going straight to the top. Soon to be seeing him on Wheaties cover, you are.

Current Mood: busy

I had a weird dream that my dad bought me that kiln, and set it up in the backyard. Maybe by dream, I mean hallucination, because that would never happen.

Anyway, it's been a busy week. Bookended by busy weekends.

But not too busy for this:
Figs stuffed with bleu cheese and wrapped in proscuitto for dinner. YAY figs!

Figs stuffed with bleu cheese and wrapped in proscuitto for dinner. YAY figs!

I finally figured out how to get my pictures off my phone, so that is exciting.

Tomorrow I have a date with John William Lautner. I wonder if my high school friend's grandparent's house is in the exhibit. That was my rather exciting introduction to Lautner, and really, to architecture.

My friend Da thinks I should make a metametablog. Blogging about blogs that blog about blogging. I think he's silly.
Oh yeh, he also doesn't want me to blog about him. Tough shit. hehe.

Today.
i'm feeling better today, i don't really know how or why but i am. i know that gram would be mad to see us being sad anyway, and it makes me mad at myself and feel selfish when i cry so i'm trying not to. yesterday was really hard for some reason, and i kept breaking down but today i feel more calm somehow. in other news, this past weekend we saw a baby bear. i spotted the darling, only about 20 feet from our car in the woods as we drove to find this elusive tower some dude built that is somehow getting high speed satellite internet from space and broadcasting it into the woods. it exists, and it works. i don't know how. anyway, the bear was cute. it looked exactly like this picture. i wonder where it's mother is.

This internet connection is super slow so as much as I want to see life drawings and comment on videos you've posted...I can't. They run slow 'round these parts.

Tonight I will have all-I-can-eat-crab legs at the Switzerland Inn: a local bar/restaurant that you can drive your boat up to.

(Excuse the poor grammar...I have had a bit to drink.)

When I am here I have this burning flame that tells me that we should NOT be doing what we do. More accuratley: I should not be doing what I do We work - all week long - blogging, slaving away at whatever. If you love your job or hate your job....there you are. Doing it. Slaving it up.

Here I sit for one week a year re-charging. In the happiest state I can be. Right now it's thunderstorming. I can't go outside, swim, or do shit. But it's still better than a day of my life in Chicago. At work. At school. Barely 50% happy.

I don't mean to project my feelings of frustration onto all of you. Maybe you love your job, your life, your calling. But THIS RIGHT HERE is where I want to be. Not in school, working for some corporation that doesn't care about me, in a city that freezes over like the arctic and taxes me till I am broke. We should be happy. And I am happy here. But when I get home... I am not this happy.

What says we can't be happy all the time? Why can't i be this elated 365 days a year? Don't get me wrong. I am not afraid of work. I just want to love my surroundings as much as I do here. Is that so wrong?

One day......universe....one day....

i just moved to chicago from new york city..
.. and i'm bored out of my mind!

Please tell me where to go... every morning i wake up so uninspired, and it's getting really old.

do you know any good bars? where can i hang out that's neat during the day?

I love how cheap it is here, i love that it's bike friendly, and i love the general vibe.. but i'm really started to go nuts over having no place to go.

help me out!

Current Mood: bored
Current Music: air- surfing on a rocket

x-posted
This Friday is 'The Worlds Biggest Block Party' or something, I've never been, and you have to be 21+ to go.
Thing is, I really want to see Ben Kweller who will be there.
Tickets are being sold at Fifth Third banks, so here's my question :

Do I get carded at FIfth Third, at the gates of the show, or both? I mean, once I have a ticket and get it, that's it, there's no more carding right?

Any information will be helpful! Thank you!

Current Mood: grumpy

I wish I had skillz

I wanna pay lots o billz.

..and I wanna do so in my pajamas.

Didn't science dream up the man period some time ago? Can I blame shit on it yet?

Current Mood: blah

Week Three. Figure Drawing.
i skipped week two. i made her upper legs too big, but oh well.
( Read more... )

My hatred is justified
Here's Frankenhooker almost hugging John McCain's daughter. Notice that it has a force field to keep the poor people away:

It's apparently really into politics and stuff. Like, really, and it supports McCain's bid to win the presidential beauty pageant thingie. Democracy rules.

Current Mood: annoyed

Hi!!! My name is Nani, I'm new to the community. I'm about to get a 2009 Scion tC in a couple of weeks, but I'm trying to find some pink rims for it before I get it (trying to start my mods early) I live in Northern California, does anyone know where I can get my hands on some?

Afternoon.
my lunch sort of blew. i combined mexican food with middle eastern. by the way, thanks everybody for your nice words and !@#$%. i'm doing laundry. tonight is art class. i got my city sticker. i should be doing work. maybe i will.