mk.fullofthink.com

I hate to break it to you, but this isn’t the only blog I write for. Actually, that’s a good sign, right? I mean, I update this blog so infrequently that I better be using my writing talents elsewhere. Otherwise, I am definitely slacking (eh, a little from Column A and a little from
Column B, to be honest). Here’s what I’ve been up to:

Firstly, my friend Dominic, who wrote symphonies in the back of our 10th grade Spanish class, asked me to write some lyrics for Grayscale Records’s Cans and Boxes project. Each month, a writer supplies lyrics and any and all musicians are welcome to put them to song. Obviously, it makes for some varied results. I’m up for July, aka song #5: “Ghosts.” The songs are Creative-Commons licensed. Regardless of what you write, I encourage you to check it out and submit something. I don’t usually write lyrics, so this pushed me to think differently about the writing process. Maybe it’ll do the same for you.

Secondly (and lastly – why did I make a two-item list?), I’m blogging for Ad2 Cincinnati. This week I wrote about marketing buzzwords that need to be given a rest. I’m captivated by the influence that words have, and I don’t mean a good speech. I mean the steeped histories associated with certain words, the retrofitting some experience, and the importance we cede to nomenclature, so this was fun to write. After reading press releases all day – and I’m weary of marketing to begin with – it was great to skewer public relation officers’ favorite info-babble. It’s a robust, turnkey solution to a dynamic, pro-active paradigm. (WHAT?)

Hopefully soon I can get back to posting regularly, instead of just listing what I’m up to. Don’t give me that incredulous look. Oh yeah, happy early Independence Day! It’s the first time in three years that I’ll be able to watch the Northside 4th of July Parade instead of walking in it, so I’m excited for that. What are your plans?

So, yeah, it’s been a while. Two weeks ago I was busy working on this article for Soapbox Cincinnati. It’s all about the University of Cincinnati’s stellar fashion design program. I’m pleased with how it turned out, and even though it ended up being longer than they’d asked for, I had still more info to include. UC has a tremendous, internationally recognized design program and a cooperative education that’s second-to-none; I recommend you check out the article. I’m a UC alumnus myself and it was a thrill to be back on campus when researching and interviewing. There’s so much creative energy there (and nostalgia, to be fair), which professional life post-college seems to lack.

After putting so much effort into that and other freelance projects, I’ve been trying to stay away from computers as much as possible. It’s not going as well as I’d hoped, but it’s nice not to be currently chained to a desk. I’m seriously considering a sabbatical from all blogging, social media, online newspapers and magazines, etc. I’m in serious need of some mental detox.

And now to contradict myself: my friend Katie just launched her blog Food = Love. I was just lamenting my lack of epicurial know-how, so this will help me change that. That gourmet grilled cheese looks like the perfect comfort food.

Friday, June 13, you need to be at Feralmade in Northside for the release of Milk Money Volume Five: The Collected Works of Alan Smithee. It’s going to be crazy, if not outright insane.

The details:
Saturday, June 13th 2009. 8PM
4573 Hamilton Ave. (FERALMADE)
Readings from the authors
Music from: Joey Deady and the Cult Classics, Gold Shoes and Frontier Folk Nebraska
Exquisite Corpse interactive art project
Free beer. No cover, but donations will be accepted at the door.
After party to follow in the basement of The Comet two doors down.

More info here. See you on the 13th.

The more I check out Edgar Wright’s blog the more excited I get about the Scott Pilgrim adaptation. I’ve never felt the anticipation that nerds fans feel when their favorite comics are translated to the big screen because I never had a favorite comic until now. (But I’m not geeking out, either.) I’ve been pacing myself when getting through the books since there’s only supposed to be six of them (#5, the most recent, should be delivered to my doorstep soon). I love how Canadian it is. The scene in Honest Ed’s in Volume 3 is classic.

Anyway, I encourage you to check out the books before the 2010 movie, of course, but here’s a few pics that made me giddy.

My brother worked on this short film for the 2009 Cincinnati College Movie Festival. It came
in second for the audience choice award and won best pre-production paperwork. Glamorous! My bro also plays various incapacitated/rowdy people throughout. I’m in it briefly. Hint: I have the shrillest line of dialogue in this (or any) movie. It has cameos from the Haven Hill family too. It’s a little crass, depending on your sensibilities, but shouldn’t be too surprising considering what makes it onto TV these days.

I was in my school district’s Talented and Gifted program for 4th and 5th grade. (And 6th-8th, but we were called “Visions” then for some still unknown reason). The TaG moniker is irrelevant except for the fact that, at the end of the day, after social studies and math and language arts, we had “potpourri.” It was just a grab-bag of assorted activities, some fun, some not. But I suppose that was our teachers’ way of saying, “We’re smart, so we have to give this an extraneous, cumbersome title.” But this is not about that, I just thought of that whilst I was titling this entry. This is about a few articles I found today that I wanted to share.

Article the first: Kenyan PM’s wife joins “sex boycott”
You go, girls.

Two: Griffey Going out With Dignity
I was touched by this. I’ve always liked Griffey. I don’t think he got a fair shake in Cincinnati, even if he didn’t really embrace us fans. He’s still a true ballplayer.

Third (and finally!): Bad Veins Track Listing, Album Art and Acoustic Session
I’ve known the track listing for a while (I know all but the last song on there by heart), but it’s great to see some album art. This is really happening! July 21, people! And release party at beautiful Fountain Square on July 24! (You can check out their entire acoustic session with Gogo Yoko here.)

…for breeding this weirdness.

I recognize that last homeless couple on there. They used to sell gum and candy near my old job on Garfield Place.

So many things to say, I don’t know where to begin, so first I guess I better just laugh at the dude in the neon-green outfit and get it out of my system. The sight of scarcely contained fat rolls does not strike fear in me. At least not the kind of fear he’s going for.

I don’t want to get too snarky because you can’t say this guy doesn’t have heart. But I worry he’s going to get hurt. ALSO, people out in Milford know each other. Not sure it’s the best idea to give your age and tragic family background, Shadow Hare. Someone along the Little Miami River is going to recognize your voice and uncover your identity.

I just ran across this on the Hater blog at the A.V. Club and I realized I should pretty much never to listen to anyone’s movie suggestions ever again. Because somewhere, thousands of people are making Crash Netflix’s most-rented DVD, and I need to steer clear of these fans. At least you can tell Twilight fans by their Hot-Topic-sanctioned wardrobe. Crash fans look like normal, discerning people.

From the Chicago Tribune (via the Hater):

No, since its DVD debut in September 2005, Crash has remained Netflix’s No. 1 rented movie—much to the delight and confusion of its director, Paul Haggis.

“I just assumed it was some sort of anomaly,” Haggis told the Tribune recently. “I have no idea why anyone went to the movie in the first place, let alone rent it. It was a little independent film, and when people started to see it, I was amazed.”

You and me both! (Also, shut up, Paul Haggis.) I’ve never seen such blatant race-baiting. I actually know people who like this movie, and it takes some cognitive dissidence on my part to hear about anything else they like art-wise. Don’t get me wrong, I think there should be more movies about race, but not if they’re like this. Not if they’re the kind of movies where apologists say, “Well, at least they get people talking.” Talking about what? No, it’s not enough to get people “talking.” Every character in Crash is a crude, irredeemable stereotype, at best. We need films that have a philosophy to stand behind, that have a point of view (it’s hard to name movies like that, I’ll admit). We don’t need some self-important movie that’s only diverse in the array of mind-boggling racism it racks up — and, after all that, amounts to nothing more than the type of milquetoast Hollywood has perfected.

Alright, alright. I’ll bring the rant to an end. But I had to let that out because, back in college, I reviewed this movie for the university newspaper. I took my boyfriend to the screening and once the lights went up I turned to him to share what I was sure would be mutual disgust. But he liked the movie and thought I was being too hard on it. He always accused me of having too harsh of an opinion on everything, so I rethought it, and was soft on it in the review.

And then we broke up. And somewhere, I’m on-record as being indifferent-to-accepting of Crash.

Videogum understands: “This movie should be sentenced to 100 million hours of community service.”

Remember back in January when I said that Milk Money, Volume Four: Weird Workout was online? Remember how I was lying? Well, I’m not lying anymore: Volume Four is up now. Check it out. Yes, that’s the one. The one with the farting workout zombie. I’m on pages 13 and 14 of the farting zombie issue.

I might have a hand in putting on the release party of Milk Money, Volume Five: The Collected Works of Alan Smithee, so check back for updates. I was at their last event and trust me, you’d be stupid to miss it.

I realize that random, interchangeable online banner ads shouldn’t merit a nanosecond’s worth of my attention, seeing how they’re usually nothing more than manically dancing silhouettes urging me to go back to school or refinance my mortgage, but this one made me laugh. And feel a little creeped out.

Why didn’t you get a life insurance policy, Dad? Also, you never taught me how to throw a baseball.

Okay, not really. I think it was more like confusion. I’m not going to get up in arms over an internet ad for a life insurance company that anyone with any sense has no business clicking on anyway. All I was thinking was “Where’d that photo come from?” and “That’s really jarring, it being smack in the middle of the XX Factor’s debate about date rape in Observe and Report and all.”

And yes, I know that companies like these – ones peddling a stripped-down product and based solely on the internet – are going to use stock art, so it’s not like they had an agency shoot this for them, or swiped it from grieving family’s Flickr page (though that would make it a lot creepier and hilarious if they did). But, that’s the best they could do? They thought a young boy crying his eyes out on top of his father’s grave would bring in the big bucks? Ads like these usually feature images of nurturing, happy families enjoying the quiet moments in life, and that’s so standard now, but maybe there’s a reason for that.

And since then, I’ve found another ad for Accuquote on the same blog, this time featuring a kid on the ground, crying over a flat-plaque tombstone. I didn’t think the ads could get worse, but they topped (bottomed?) themselves. Good job. (I thought I saved these ads on my computer but was mistaken, so the image above comes from east village idiot.)

Yes, I know it’s been a while. You want to complain or read a poem? Well, here’s a poem anyway.

This is “Casabianca” by Elizabeth Bishop, which, if you haven’t read it before, takes a 1798 maritime tragedy and the (blind, crazy and supposed) heroism of a young boy, and turns it into an allegory for love. I used it for an InkTank writing exercise today and it’s one of my favorites poems, period. Perhaps, at a later date, I’ll post other favorites.

Casabianca

Love’s the boy stood on the burning deck
trying to recite “The boy stood on
the burning deck.” Love’s the son
      stood stammering elocution
      while the poor ship in flames went down.

Love’s the obstinate boy, the ship,
even the swimming sailors, who
would like a schoolroom platform, too,
      or an excuse to stay
      on deck. And love’s the burning boy.

March is shaping up to be an awesome month for concerts in Cincinnati. There’s more than this, but so far, I plan on attending:

Tokyo Police Club @ the Mad Hatter on the 3rd (finally!)

Bad Veins is opening for Annuals and Jessica Lee Mayfield @ the Southgate House on the 4th

Bad Veins and the Seedy Seeds @ the Mad Hatter on the 6th (a sendoff for two of the the best bands in Cincinnati before they go to SXSW)

Headlights and Pomegranates (the other best band in Cincinnati) @ Southgate House on FRIDAY THE 13th.

You, You’re Awesome @ Northside Tavern on the 14th.

Heartless Bastards are playing at the Madison Theate on March 25th, but I’m trying to be a recessionista here, so I might have to skip it. It’ll be their fourth local show in a row that I’ve skipped, so that sucks. There are other great shows in April, including Peter, Bjorn and John and Junior Boys both at the SGH, and Of Montreal at the Madison theatre, but again, recessionista.

Anyways, what shows are you looking forward to?

From PROJECTMILL’s movie for the release of the newest issue of Milk Money.

Excuse my language, but I hate the fat, unlaid virgins out there creating spamming software. My blog has been so plagued with spamming comments lately and once I tried to delete them I deleted every comment up to April or so of last year. What is with the internet!? Seriously! What is with creating nonsensical garbage posts? Dammit, internet, some of us have real work to do.