tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-333416512012-02-16T22:43:22.557-05:00melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.comBlogger4111100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-63469135532143346992012-02-13T23:41:00.000-05:002012-02-13T23:43:23.076-05:00

Last summer I visited Disney World with my family. I thoroughly enjoyed EPCOT but I was distressed to discover that the local Magic Kingdom wildlife was suffering from some kind of mange disorder.  I informed the customer service desk at Main Street about the problem.  After my trip, I wrote an email to the customer service department listed on Disney's website. I was surprised to receive a

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-71905464506810316742012-01-24T02:36:00.002-05:002012-01-24T02:38:08.814-05:00

Whenever Charlie Brown came up in nostalgia conversations, I would list this special as the wildest and most bizarre.  And people would just give me blank stares.  No.  They never remembered Snoopy going to discotheques and engaging in dance bacchanalias.  In fact they told me I was making the whole thing up. Then I started to believe I was crazy and that I had an hallucination episode where

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-5536811913527785272012-01-12T19:56:00.001-05:002012-01-12T20:01:22.372-05:00

Mansfield Park has proven to be one of the more problematic entries in Austen's canon.  Mainly because it features a heroine that most people just don't favor.  Even the novel's first audience (Austen's own family) were sharply divided on Price. Fanny Price is either hated or loved and very rarely in-between. I set forth to read the book and make my own decision.  And I discovered that Fanny

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-30677509769440326562012-01-10T16:47:00.002-05:002012-01-24T02:48:27.009-05:00

Quite frankly, I don't understand how Del Toro and company could have completely misunderstood the outstanding elements of the original film.  Their remake of a classic (treasured by all 70's kids) turned into some kind of child's fairy tale nightmare just doesn't work.  What is even more baffling is that Del Toro wusses out at the end of the film, something which he did not do in his superior

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-49380163816669853762012-01-04T18:44:00.000-05:002012-01-04T18:44:07.906-05:00

I'm not a cook, not even a weekend cook.  I'm the kind of person who slaps stuff in a pot to boil or in a frying pan to fry.  But I am trying to learn basic, easy things instead of just buying them ready made. A few weeks back I purchased a scone mix from Harry & David.  It wasn't that cheap either.  But in my mind, I thought there must have been serious voodoo involved in scone making.  So the

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-67402091652315055562011-12-29T16:19:00.000-05:002011-12-29T16:19:36.836-05:00

Just a laugh before New Year from the fantastic Carlin. Seriously, I don't think I've ever met a Todd who wasn't a big, hateful jackass.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-487266991879702692011-12-14T15:03:00.001-05:002011-12-14T15:03:23.151-05:00

I purchased this book when it was released last summer and I just finished it now.  This is not because I am a slow reader (granted slower than I was in my heyday), but because most of it was just plain boring. Did this volume move the story any closer to resolution?  No way on God's green earth it did.  The only reason for this drawn out mess was to reposition the characters for when the story

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-4851741819723013302011-12-10T18:47:00.001-05:002011-12-10T18:54:28.048-05:00

You weren't a child of the 70's if you didn't remember being scared out of your wits by this television ad.  It was always put on during the most popular television hours too, you know, during children's most favorite TV shows....Happy Days, Laverne and Shirley, Charlie's Angels, Three's Company, Love Boat, and Fantasy Island.  I think even during Little House on the Prairie.  Prime time was a

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-39012336515489875222011-11-22T02:28:00.001-05:002011-11-22T02:30:21.389-05:00

A truly funny and sweet-natured parody of Downton Abbey. I think the best bit was rolling Pamuk down the stairs.  This is episode one, you can find the rest of them on Youtube.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-25651443916876955012011-11-08T14:27:00.000-05:002011-11-08T14:37:17.961-05:00

Lets begin another discussion of Hitchcock's The Birds. Yes, the film is a horror film. It is also a psychological thriller about a family and community. The psychological interpretation is the most commonly discussed element of the film. But it has a deeper meaning that very few people notice and it shares the same fairy tale space as other fantasies such Lord Of The Rings and Harry Potter.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-57072805144029193112011-09-30T21:07:00.000-04:002011-09-30T21:07:21.718-04:00

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-70089442383600375942011-09-26T16:18:00.000-04:002011-09-27T02:15:57.301-04:00

Right now, I'm kind of sick of Star Wars.  The whole kit and caboodle not just the films.  I'm really tired of fans screeching about how horrible the prequels were and that the original films should be taken out of Lucas' custody.  I can't wait to see what a train wreck the new MMO coming out on Christmas turns out to be. You know, I used to be one of those people bitching about Phantom

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-53580631676877139042011-09-25T00:19:00.000-04:002011-09-25T00:46:22.639-04:00

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-25894203434456525702011-09-24T21:53:00.001-04:002011-09-25T00:47:46.332-04:00

I've read many books in the past few weeks, but I've been lazy about writing my thoughts about them.  So with this book, I'll try getting back on track. This book is just one in a very, very, very small genre of literature about Eastern European criminal activity.  Right off the bat, I'm leery about this book in general.  For one, it is already more than a decade old which means much of it's

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-82780100300983951792011-09-10T15:45:00.000-04:002011-09-10T15:48:19.527-04:00

I received a prissy email from Disney World stating that they are looking into their animal problem.  Although if they were paying attention to the details, their animal problem wouldn't have gotten so dire.  Whatever. I was amazed by the inflation at the parks (Universal included).  The prices for food and souvenirs reached ridiculous levels, such as almost 10 dollars for a hamburger and fries

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-69667009610454422992011-09-05T22:56:00.000-04:002011-09-05T22:56:12.913-04:00

And so I made a pilgrimage to Disney World last week. The last time I was at chez Disney was more than 15 years ago.  It was all fun, but at one point during my visit the fun stopped.  It seemed as if a light switch was flipped and the park I was in was no longer amusing.  Instead it seemed rather pathetic, false and soulless.  For the rest of my trip, I couldn't shake that new insight.  It was

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-44775263874485037272011-08-12T09:02:00.002-04:002011-08-12T09:02:58.290-04:00

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-26601005994774554942011-08-12T03:50:00.000-04:002011-08-12T03:50:00.453-04:00

There was a story listed recently on the Huffington Post website regarding number sense.  Researchers created a simple test that determines acuity in mathematics.  The subject of mathematical ability has always fascinated me mainly because I was born without it.  Or at the very least, had an impediment in regards to math. When I remember way back into my school years, the concepts of math were

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-79340326873713543372011-07-24T21:43:00.002-04:002011-07-24T21:55:39.930-04:00

Source Code.... Oh My, Why oh Why? I rented this on pay per view because I've read so many raves about it.  That should have been a warning to me. Was it amusing?  Yes, very amusing.  If you didn't expend a lot mental energy trying to understand it.  Because there is nothing to understand. All this movie was, was a gimmick.  The lead had a gimmick that allowed him to travel back into time or

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-84941985455122724602011-07-17T23:57:00.000-04:002011-07-17T23:57:50.156-04:00

The summer this song was released, I had an all consuming obsession for it.  The radio never played it often enough for me.  I think I played several 45s of it to pieces.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-82392162500170415932011-07-16T21:29:00.001-04:002011-07-16T21:32:24.141-04:00

When I decided to get an update to my computer last fall, I bit the bullet and purchased a Windows machine.  Up until last year I was always a Mac person.  Mainly because they were easy to maintain and troubleshoot.  Truthfully I don't find Macs really any better than Windows software wise except for the previously mentioned maintenance factors. My new little Windows laptop ran very nicely for a

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-60306575783448006382011-07-15T20:18:00.001-04:002011-07-16T02:36:16.958-04:00

I'm not the only fan of the "Fire and Ice" series to admit that Brienne of Tarth is my favorite character.  During the last book she took center stage and her fate is something of a mystery. Recently they cast an actress to play this character.  Which surprised me because, considering there are so many characters in the book, Brienne might just as well be written out of the series.  But I

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-10902390301139540002011-07-06T12:32:00.001-04:002011-07-06T12:36:05.778-04:00

I don't know why I rented this feature, but I was bored.  Truthfully I was expecting something so awful that I would be able to rant on about it for hours.  At least that was what professional reviewers had done.  Was it awful?  No.  Was it good?  No.  This film was packed with many good ideas and many bad ideas all mashed together in one very amazing looking jumble.  Now some of that jumble was

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-18332646242146113002011-06-28T14:19:00.000-04:002011-06-28T14:19:52.000-04:00

Hitchcock and Muppets.  Can't go wrong with that combo.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-28400744498641885442011-06-23T10:14:00.001-04:002011-06-23T10:15:49.818-04:00

This is just an update to the last post on Pottermore. Unfortunately, the mystery was not about a Potter sequel, prequel or completely new series of Rowling books.  Pottermore is just an online forums, web games and encyclopedia site based on the Harry Potter IP.  Which explains why Rowling was involved in a lawsuit with a fan who ran an informal HP encyclopedia a few years back. There were some

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-82785613390390405862011-06-17T18:58:00.000-04:002011-06-17T18:58:00.019-04:00

Oh No In truth, the minute this writer crowed that she would write no more Potter books, I felt it would eventually be proved otherwise. The eventual is here. Now, I was a part of this fandom after the crazy release of "Harry Potter and The Order of the Phoenix".  I watched the fandom, engaged in the debates and watched in horror as the author herself behaved less than diplomatically to parts

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-13282574775150949952011-06-09T01:08:00.000-04:002011-06-09T01:08:21.977-04:00

Reminds me of gangsters and banksters.  A song for our times.  So funny it's tragic.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-67868993276783598152011-05-26T19:30:00.001-04:002011-05-26T21:38:34.252-04:00

I'm not a big fan of fashion.  But sometimes, something or someone appears in that scene that just breaks ground.  Now, the fashion industry always played with the concept of androgyny.    Until recently that always meant a female model who had masculine characteristics. That type of androgyny was not threatening to patriarchal notions of female sexuality.  Lesbianism has been objectified enough

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-26485159474467008092011-05-17T23:58:00.000-04:002011-05-17T23:58:53.196-04:00

I got caught in the 7th Circle of Youtube period clips.  And just barely escaped.  But I have to say I adored all those historical films of the 20's. And I wasn't the only one either.  A lot of people have remixed the videos and set them to modern music.  Its weird how well they fit together.  If you do a bit more searching, you will find the originals with the original music. On a more

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-24464648005496238882011-05-16T00:42:00.000-04:002011-05-16T00:42:37.644-04:00

I watched "Alien" for the first time in many years.  I've always had fondness for it because it was a really well done horror story. But after the latest rewatch, I had a hard time figuring out just what made it so attractive to me at the time.  Because I can't for the life of me find anything to like about it now except for the alien design and set design. Somehow, Scott got away with

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-81496457605145514512011-04-25T16:50:00.000-04:002011-04-25T16:50:08.146-04:00

I missed this in the theaters last winter even though the clunky original held a special place in my memories.  Not to say that I ever had the illusion that TRON was a great movie.  It was not.  The original was filled with great ideas pieced together more by great visuals and quirky acting rather than by plot.  Strangely enough, I did not even see the original in the theater either.  I only

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-344338434206971672011-03-31T23:57:00.002-04:002011-03-31T23:57:25.474-04:00

For the REAL THING

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-73942945888012860452011-03-31T22:13:00.000-04:002011-03-31T22:13:41.372-04:00

So I just watched this film. And was disappointed to discover it was Aranofsky remaking Aronofsky.  Black Swan is just a remake of Pi.  Unfortunately, Pi was the superior effort.  It isn't as if Aranofsky was even subtle about this retooling of his breakthrough film.  There are visual quotes of Pi all through Black Swan.  He even went so far as to pull in the train pervert who bothered Pi lead

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-34803274986115935242011-02-21T16:05:00.000-05:002011-02-21T16:05:40.144-05:00

As loads of governments collapse and fail in this current depression, there are little signs that go along with the economic collapse.  It is cultural collapse.  It is when a populace no longer believes in their former government or their shared cultural morals. Our cultural collapse is on display within films and TV shows.  We are getting a plethora of "LIMBO" themes (Life on Mars, Lost),

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-47559696242553233602011-02-20T20:33:00.000-05:002011-02-20T20:33:02.857-05:00

I almost never pay attention to my dreams.  Most times they are merely amusing psychotic play shows that my brain cooks up when my higher brain functions are turned off for the night.  I remember once my grandmother stated that she loved to sleep and even more to dream.  That thought impressed me so much as a child that I decided to take the same attitude. It was around that time that I

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-23100232117674312002011-02-18T23:24:00.000-05:002011-02-18T23:24:45.113-05:00

This film was released as a preview on Itunes recently.  It starred one of my favorite actors, Sean Bean, and  it had an historical background for the story.  So I decided to spend the 9 bucks for the rental preview. And after it was over, I thought to myself...what the hell did I just watch? One big piece of advice to Sean Bean fans, Mr. Bean is not the star of this film.  He has what amounts

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-67234595994823035802011-01-19T21:15:00.000-05:002011-01-19T21:15:21.905-05:00

Lately I've been more interested in gaming and gaming subculture rather than what popular culture is interested in  at the moment.  When I'm not gaming, I'm reading (Cheever at the moment). So I hopped on Salon and read an interesting post from a writer obsessed with Mormon homemaking blogs.  I never knew such a thing existed.  Of course, I have browser folders full of links to interior

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-87153865826965518982011-01-08T00:58:00.000-05:002011-01-08T00:58:51.543-05:00

No, I'm not plugging for Hotels.com.  But they do have a cute event going on at their web page.  You can create an annoying little clay portrait of yourself.  Then set it up in their voting contest to be featured in their ads. I didn't enter the contest. You can create your own clay face here: http://www.clayyourself.com/ Happy New Year!

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-587370070206393212010-11-05T01:36:00.000-04:002010-11-05T01:36:25.781-04:00

The current song on my ipod that is set to replay over and over again.  Very reminiscent of Souxsie and the Banshees.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-33969701780166874752010-09-10T08:19:00.001-04:002010-09-10T08:19:50.117-04:00

Apparently I moonlight as someone named Tom Wickline.  One of my blog posts has been reprinted without credit or my permission. Originalhttp://takashiriku.blogspot.com/2010/05/crossover-games.html Tom Wickline?  On who knows how many sites it appeared under this name.http://www.wine-reviews.net/wine-reviews/cxgames-mac/crossover-games.html I discovered that this Tom Wickline represents another

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-74274136926049858562010-08-21T23:15:00.000-04:002010-08-21T23:15:34.082-04:00

Since my stomach gave out on me almost three years ago my eating has changed drastically.  Which led to drastic weight loss.  Which was scary. But even more disturbing is my relationship to food. Food for me was wonderful.  Even though at times, I wished that I didn't eat so much of it.  Especially the types of food I enjoyed.  There were cravings.  Sometimes those cravings had nothing to do

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-82663166441051710292010-07-24T22:44:00.002-04:002010-07-24T22:44:34.717-04:00

Too funny

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-54958607449506599122010-07-19T23:57:00.005-04:002010-07-20T10:20:45.850-04:00

Photo courtesy of Nakadate.Net.  Copyright Laurel Nakadate I don't remember exactly where I first heard of Laurel Nakadate.  But I do know I loved her work as soon as I saw it. Her biggest projects were photos and videos of people she met through online communities and personals.  Most of those people were men who were willing to let their meetings be documented on film.  What followed were

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-75728447565753674642010-06-19T21:13:00.001-04:002010-06-19T21:15:03.252-04:00

When "Avatar" hit the screens last holiday season, I wasn't interested.  Even when it hit big after all the naysayers said it couldn't return the money invested in it, I still wasn't interested.  3D?  What did I care?  People crying because they couldn't be Navi on Pandora...whatever.  I wasn't even going to purchase it on DVD or Blu-Ray, but my family gave it to me as a gift.  And so I finally

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-55431200433151874342010-06-15T01:13:00.000-04:002010-06-15T01:13:35.399-04:00

I'm done with this fucking marketing, advertising triangularization of the population by age.  I mean, trying to define vast groups of people with stereotype traits is ridiculous.  Its all smoke blown up our asses in order to sell cheeseburgers. And some would say my attitude is typical of someone born as "Generation X". Well advertising culture must label away.  Its what they are paid to do.  

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-60976113496567644952010-06-11T19:41:00.000-04:002010-06-11T19:41:27.084-04:00

More bewitching imagery from Ellen Von Unwerth.  I love her style.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-60817765549599685342010-06-08T21:22:00.000-04:002010-06-08T21:22:40.613-04:00

I don't long for lost youth.  There isn't much of anything I regret.  Besides quibbling over every past decision is a waste of time. But what I do long for are places in time that are important.  Being an aspiring child performer in New York during the 70's and early 80's had a huge impact on me as a person.  There was a purity in performance art then that has disappeared now.  Where did it

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-31477593407741736992010-06-02T01:45:00.004-04:002010-06-02T01:53:02.229-04:00

Its only been about 3 months since the huge release of this Disney blockbuster and already it has been released to video.  This would have been a sign of a spectacular failure in old days, but in the race to defeat bootleggers the studios release to home video as soon as possible regardless of the film's success. The film made money even though it received very mixed reviews.  The response

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-30172325458775671712010-06-01T05:59:00.000-04:002010-06-01T05:59:50.227-04:00

My 2010 summer music pick obsession right now.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-51355378480269070042010-05-24T16:44:00.000-04:002010-05-24T16:44:00.112-04:00

Picture break.  Shots from a trip to the Stamford Irish Dance Contest.  I love the costumes, each represent a specific dance school.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-21416681769086415712010-05-22T10:07:00.000-04:002010-05-22T10:07:34.846-04:00

Well, I finished watching "Ashes to Ashes" and to my disappointment it was neither as awful as it could have been nor as good as it could have been.  But it ultimately did set itself forth as a shining example of the cultural limbo, Jaron Lanier describes in his book "You are Not a Gadget". Basically the show ended it's argument that it is a depiction of limbo for cops.  And Gene Hunt is some

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-86974498401115990902010-05-20T17:57:00.000-04:002010-05-20T17:57:44.168-04:00

Stock Market crashing yet again! Whoopeee for the bankster con men. As for the film clip, I'm sure a whole dissertation could be written about the symbolization of the costume quarters covering the Chorus girls private areas.  That is a whole load of misogyny that explodes my brain.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-73537431615029236892010-05-15T01:32:00.000-04:002010-05-15T01:32:24.966-04:00

I've noticed something for quite some time about British Fantasy/Sci-Fi/Mystery novels, films and shows.  They almost never have a money shot.  Its all build up to absolutely NOTHING.  The creators like to build up and add everything up to the kitchen sink but then are at ass end odds how to clear it all up.  The Harry Potter series is a prime example of this.  To some extent even "The Prisoner"

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-41992488720134084262010-05-03T18:59:00.001-04:002010-05-03T19:01:46.598-04:00

Sequels for any successful film will always be failures regardless of good quality.  The audience is looking for that first rush of feeling when they saw the first film and that can't be duplicated. In the Ring 2, the creators have wisely gone back to the Japanese roots of the story.  They reveal or at least strongly hint that Samara was never human.  She is an water elemental god, known in

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-6124542541056364112010-05-01T03:04:00.000-04:002010-05-01T03:04:18.195-04:00

I purchased my Blu-Ray player last holiday season. I didn't plan to own the new player.  The discs seemed over priced except when they were on sale.  And I was wary of the technology.  But Sam's Club was having offering good deals, so I took the chance. The first player I purchased didn't have an HDMI hookup, so it went back.  Then I picked up a cheaper Philips model that did have one.  That

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-3603471779539929592010-04-18T01:56:00.002-04:002010-04-18T19:42:13.693-04:00

A proof of concept video for a robotic dog form.  Of course, heavily funded by the military.  I'm glad to see that in a middle of the worst financial disaster of modern times, that the military is still discovering advanced forms of murderous weaponry.  Using all of our money of course. Anyway this is a fascinating experiment and shows just how far robotics research has come to this date.  

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-41995155775565396112010-04-04T05:06:00.000-04:002010-04-04T05:06:21.459-04:00

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-14161538530162853442010-03-19T14:36:00.000-04:002010-03-19T14:36:14.552-04:00

Target has interesting collaborations with designers.  To get a hold of these items is quite an adventure in itself.  Usually I stick to online ordering.  But its nerve wracking to order clothing unless one is really familiar with the clothing company's sizing standards. The previous clothing designers for Target were Rodarte and Gaultier.  They had hit or miss clothing items with quality that

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-52593795977201696852010-03-17T19:38:00.000-04:002010-03-17T19:38:40.779-04:00

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-58676706561280759702010-03-05T14:59:00.000-05:002010-03-05T14:59:09.792-05:00

Dwelling too much on the crazy body images foisted upon everyone by our crazy culture can get anyone angry at fashion.  When really it should be something fun, functional and sometimes a bit artistic.  And I've recently discovered that my love for fashion is more fulfilled by my fellow average women than fashion magazines.  I enjoy fashion magazines for their photography and presentation.  But

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-48056461307918929622010-02-25T19:00:00.000-05:002010-02-25T19:00:57.583-05:00

"You are to make a fine wife for uncouth American businessman!" Yes, another post that contains cats. And I'm not a crazy cat person.  Really!  I just love lolcats and now this new parody site...Rolcats, the Russian version.  Complete with loopy, ridiculous and entirely wrong translations.  To get the real deal, read the comments in which fans give the down low on the real cat joke translations.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-24053818569273678922010-02-06T23:11:00.000-05:002010-02-06T23:11:57.900-05:00

This cat is the mascot of a Japanese travel site.  He apparently has a whole slew of commercials for this company in which he travels the world. So adorable.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-20286539478021478672010-02-05T14:34:00.000-05:002010-02-05T14:34:19.144-05:00

I was wandering around the net and visited the page of Copyranter.  He usually mocks the inept advertising of various agencies around the world.  A while back he posted a mockery of a CK ad for male clothing.  In this ad, it showcased a beautiful black model nude and dressed in CK clothing.  I added a comment to Copyranter's blog stating it looked like a rip off of Riefenstahl's Nuba photography

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-52261464630693894702010-01-22T15:43:00.001-05:002010-01-22T15:44:13.124-05:00

I've loved this song by Tori Amos for years now.  But I've never seen the music video made for it. Its too bad, because its filled with mind twisting imagery that I love.  There is a dark but magical atmosphere and Amos herself as a kind of Sleeping Beauty.  Just fantastic.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-79877044091316544992010-01-19T15:57:00.001-05:002010-01-19T16:03:27.351-05:00

On this thread at Shapely Prose. The original article wanted to know why women who were averaged sized are ignored by the fashion industry.  Especially when there seems to be a crazy emphasis on extremely thin models and the one "plus sized" model in vogue now (Crystal Renn all by her lonesome). What I tried to point out in the comments was that the Fashion Industry does not use the same

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-57238723763030029902010-01-02T23:45:00.000-05:002010-01-02T23:45:42.529-05:00

This song is soooo bad, soooo trashy it goes straight to the barrel bottom and then somehow ends up on top.  How it manages to do it, I don't know. Is it breaking new ground?  NO Will it be on everyone's best album of 2010 list?  Definitely not But will most be dancing to it behind locked doors?  Most likely. Here is the video.  I have to say I love this trash fest even more after watching

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-21617971778112081432009-12-30T08:37:00.000-05:002009-12-30T08:37:21.727-05:00

I discovered the work of Frederic Fontenoy through the website of Violet Blue.  His series Chambre Noir has all the features I love in photography.  His photos have a creamy, noir feel.  It harks back to the style of the late 20's/early 30's.  Like Speers and Von Unwerth, he quotes the brothel atmosphere of historic red light Paris.  There is also a bit of parody in the series as well, with

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-43172539067907795712009-12-29T17:57:00.000-05:002009-12-29T17:57:51.118-05:00

I don't do end of the year reviews or introspection shit or promise to all to lose weight off my fat ass. Fuck it. We are all one year closer to death.  Deal with it. And Have a Happy New Year!

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-47019047578902670322009-12-28T17:03:00.000-05:002009-12-28T17:03:43.374-05:00

Nora Ephron is a fucking hack.  She has no fucking game. Awhile back, I read one professional reviewer call her obvious to the point of no imagination.  And this was about that smash hit "When Harry Met Sally".  He mentioned something to the point about playing an overplayed christmas carol over the christmas scenes to make a point about being alone on christmas.  Fucking WHY?  At the time, I

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-88869681797316794422009-12-27T02:31:00.003-05:002009-12-27T02:52:21.024-05:00

Deep down inside, we all know that the clothing sizes we buy in stores are a load of filthy, fucking lies.  These lies can't all be laid at the door step of the clothing companies.  Our combined vanity as a public have also pushed this on them.  It is to our detriment, because these bogus sizes fuel the whole "US public is getting FATTY FAT FAT" lie. Size 00, 0, 2, and 4 are really fantasy.  

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-37532682201296227302009-12-26T21:50:00.000-05:002009-12-26T21:50:44.321-05:00

I'm late to the Crystal craze sweeping the tubes.  This was a young model who began her career as a regular (i.e super thin) high Fashion runway goddess.  At a turning point in her career, she rebelled and allowed herself to gain weight.  Only to triumph as a plus sized model. Yes, what you see above is the bone the fashion industry is throwing us...labeled plus size. Ms. Renn looks to hover

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-7957237731229224272009-12-25T01:07:00.000-05:002009-12-25T01:07:04.574-05:00

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-57674094720693921272009-12-22T14:55:00.000-05:002009-12-22T14:55:42.121-05:00

Weight loss does nothing to help GERD or similar stomach problems. Nada Nothing I still have GERD and I still have flare ups despite fastidiously watching every fork full I put into my mouth. GERD with weight?  Honestly, I felt healthier when I had extra weight.  I bounced back from the attacks quicker than I do now.  At my supposedly healthier weight, I feel weaker and sick longer after an

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-69356799619090624542009-12-21T15:56:00.000-05:002009-12-21T15:56:46.059-05:00

Massive Attack Paradise Circus from sabakan on Vimeo. I caught this on various sites around the internet. The clip is an interview of Georgina Spelvin discussing sex and her role in an iconic 70's porn film.  She is absolutely mesmerizing, candid and no nonsense.  The only thing I can compare it to is Diablo Cody's book "Candy Girl". For the Record this video clip is NSFW.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-21341607224083524102009-12-20T17:07:00.002-05:002009-12-20T17:09:57.814-05:00

I've touched upon the commoditization of female avatars in the worlds of Second Life and Warcraft quite a few times. These are male worlds and they are concerned with male dominance themes.  So female players and female characters are rather superfluous.  We female players are treated as a group of annoying baby sisters who follow the big brothers around.  And when that isn't current script

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-83872391504090398852009-12-19T21:05:00.000-05:002009-12-19T21:05:53.297-05:00

It took a long time for me to get used to my reflection after my weight loss. When I was younger, I thought a smaller clothing size would lead to eternal happiness.  All that really happened was having to spend extra money to purchase clothing that fit me right.  There was no happiness.  There was a lot annoyance because much of the larger clothing I could no longer wear was quite nice. Still

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-10951059618785729922009-12-18T02:22:00.000-05:002009-12-18T02:22:40.519-05:00

It would never have been a conscious choice of mine to house three cats.  One cat is nice.  Two cats keep one another company and out of trouble.  Three cats or more turn into an army.  An army of feline imperialism.  Everywhere you turn, there is a cat slinking away or watching.  Whenever spied upon as a group, they immediately disperse looking furtive.  Things start to disappear and end up in

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-60057309582696407222009-11-18T17:46:00.000-05:002009-11-18T17:46:52.770-05:00

As I was puttering around in my kitchen this morning, preparing my breakfast, something strange occurred.  The upper cabinet where unused crockery is kept opened and out flew blue melamine dishes.  They were my grandmother's dishes, very utilitarian and long lasting.  I remembered them from dinners long past at her apartment. Now, I didn't witness the opening of the cabinet door,  I just

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-73299932435454294002009-11-17T00:55:00.000-05:002009-11-17T00:55:20.645-05:00

I am obsessed with this sweater coat from Anthropologie.  Can I resist?

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-57496278797460216882009-11-13T01:09:00.000-05:002009-11-13T01:09:26.855-05:00

Romeo and Juliet. Here is a clip of the great Gelsey Kirkland in the role of Juliet. She has to be one of the greatest ballerinas of the late 20th century.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-76309402842630489422009-11-13T00:45:00.001-05:002009-11-13T00:47:14.896-05:00

When I was a kid, I had a VHS tape of Ferri dancing Juliet with the Royal Ballet. I never thought I would see her live in performance. But then she moved to American Ballet and I was able to see her dance in Romeo and Juliet. Her Romeo was Julio Bocca, who has now retired. I count myself lucky to have seen them both.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-83090036028129109212009-11-12T01:44:00.003-05:002009-11-12T01:57:12.308-05:00

I've had "Goodfellas" in my DVD library for years.  And I haven't watched it for awhile, because the subject matter makes me uncomfortable for a variety of reasons. But I love the film for it's atmosphere, Scorsese not only documents mob life but captures a New York that is long gone.  The New York of my baby hood and I miss it at times. Another reason why the film is so fantastic is that it

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-4539008322296925752009-11-10T01:51:00.002-05:002009-11-10T01:53:25.878-05:00

I stumbled upon Lisa Sarfati's photo book, Fashion Magazine, while rummaging around the MOMA's bookstore. The photos are eerie, magical and slightly kooky.  They play at being outtakes from Vogue or other fashion rags but there are deeper themes at play then just showcasing a Lacroix shirt.  Sarfati showcases models who are regular kids not fashion types.  She proceeds to mix up her models

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-33804739045997360232009-11-06T05:16:00.000-05:002009-11-06T05:16:44.375-05:00

Actually the Red Riding Hood kick was started by "Arts and Ghosts" who recently posted a picture of this scene on her inspiration blog. It reminded me how much I loved this film as a kid. Because what child does not love fairy tales?

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-33952451232285424422009-11-06T04:58:00.002-05:002009-11-06T05:14:03.617-05:00

It is most likely something would be lost in the translation.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-64636666140719288542009-11-01T11:58:00.006-05:002009-11-01T12:13:12.665-05:00

As I mentioned in my review of "The Uninvited", I like my ghost stories with a bite of reality.  When there is a mystery added in, it makes it even more alluring.  Washington Irving's "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" has loads of both elements. It was written in the form of a faux memoir by a character Irving named Diedrich Knickerbocker.  Even at the early date of the book's publishing, around

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-50873582781010390532009-11-01T07:19:00.000-05:002009-11-01T07:19:27.742-05:00

As can be seen, I've gone terribly girly with my webpage.  Who knows how long that will last.  But I've been wanting a change.  Now I need to make a header image. This is a photo of gorgeous stationary from Paper Nosh.  The recent offerings have an Ancien Regime theme that I love.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-78227597424178197842009-10-24T19:57:00.003-04:002009-10-24T20:53:25.824-04:00

Occasionally I still rent movies from Itunes. I was in the mood for a decent horror flick considering the time of year, and I read reviews recommending "The Uninvited". It also featured one of my favorite young actresses, Emily Browning.I feel that the best horror is firmly grounded in reality. Yes, spooks and monsters are fun but at the end of the movie or book we can forget about them. But

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-67475723176439218312009-10-22T14:36:00.001-04:002009-10-22T14:39:52.978-04:00

WoW fanvid spoof of Adam Samberg's parody "I'm on a Boat".

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-26261675943259949372009-10-18T21:39:00.006-04:002009-10-18T22:06:31.801-04:00

In worlds that can be evergreen, always spring with youth eternal and no death...we insist on celebrating our seasonal holidays in them. Holidays that are ancient practices which were created to cushion the blow of our deaths.Far from giving ourselves up to these fantasies, we seem to have an innate need to wake up from them. To remind ourselves of the real life chain, the one that will not

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-15122666885535639182009-09-28T13:05:00.000-04:002009-09-28T13:06:57.907-04:00

I'm obsessed with this song.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-6438102602784419702009-09-16T17:01:00.003-04:002009-09-16T17:32:04.229-04:00

There are terms that cause problems beyond what is necessary in English. I love them.One of them is the difference between Dinner and Supper. I found a wealth of hits on google about which is which. And the main differences are basically regional.I lived all over but spent most of my years on the East Coast. So in my family it was always breakfast, lunch and dinner. Supper was reserved for

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-45574591138312513282009-09-15T00:08:00.003-04:002009-09-15T00:15:21.301-04:00

http://personas.media.mit.edu/personasWeb.htmlI discovered this interesting meme from an SL blogger.The site pulls data about your internet self or your RL life, from various sources around the net. This could be anything from comments you have made at other sites to blogs to memberships at a music Last Fm site. Then it creates a barcode of you. That is the simple explanation. The site is

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-74949027214908870172009-09-01T01:01:00.006-04:002009-10-31T17:35:21.814-04:00

Whenever I visit the MET, I spend the most time studying the statues. Especially in the Roman & Greek wing. There is always something new to see. In particular the expressions carved onto each figure. These are my photos taken during a recent visit.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-83562816689193698372009-08-27T00:36:00.002-04:002009-08-27T00:37:21.968-04:00

Old Musical Theater nerd here and a Fosse lover. This is the best part of "Kiss Me Kate".

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-75391709381169183692009-08-12T12:20:00.006-04:002009-08-12T13:09:30.086-04:00

Hulu.com just uploaded a copy of this movie. I remember being outright baffled by it. It may have been a few years before it's time. But now with the MMORPG games hitting their prime, the message of the film becomes more immediate.It had the misfortune to be released at the same time as that cultural juggernaut "The Matrix". And it was compared as being in the same theme. Well, yes and no.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-12363705208266228522009-08-08T12:47:00.005-04:002009-08-08T23:56:14.360-04:00

I downloaded the Mac Beta for Warhammer Online this week. Its been an interesting foray into another fantasy mmorpg.As you can see the game itself looks amazing. All of these screenshots have minimal editing, most of them taken the lowest graphic settings. The game uses a wrapper program to port it from it's native windows to work on mac machines. My Imac is reaching it's second year, and it

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-19788237594389279562009-07-27T16:20:00.000-04:002009-07-27T16:21:37.083-04:00

A fanvid created from Woodman's work.

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-35690725110883777042009-07-27T14:47:00.006-04:002009-07-27T15:52:38.640-04:00

I discovered Woodman's work in a photography magazine. Her photos are rarely released into print media. And her popularity seems to find it's epicenter among photographers and serious photographer hobbyists. She is, as one article stated, a photographer's photographer. And all this at a very young age.One of the main themes in every article written about her work, was her suicide. It is an

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-33341651.post-59277550265396555222009-07-26T05:23:00.013-04:002009-07-26T06:34:22.274-04:00

In the Wharton's The House of Mirth, there was a scene in which Lily Bart took part in a popular cultural game of the time, tableau vivant. She posed as a famous art persona in a recreation of a famous art work. The viewers marveled at her beauty and accorded to her artistic temperament. Well she was beautiful but the artistic value inside Ms. Bart was unknown. She neither had the will,

melponeme_khttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08876815411442060473noreply@blogger.com0