Artistic Resistance

The Avett Brothers TONIGHT on Late Night!

2012-01-20T00:10:00.006-05:00

TONIGHT on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon, (12:37am EST - 1:37am EST) my all-timefavorite band, The Avett Brothers are the musical guests! They will be performing the song "One Too Many Mornings," which they had the distinct honor and privilege of arranging and recording their own rendition of, with the late legend himself, Mr. Johnny Cash.

The track will be featured on the upcoming benefit musical album, "Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan: Honoring 50 Years of Amnesty International." The album will be available to the public for purchase this coming Tuesday, January 24th. It's available now for pre-order on Amazon.com. You can pre-order it from them by click HERE. The album features many various artists, and contains a total of SEVENTY-SIX SONGS. That is not a typo. SEVENTY-SIX SONGS available for digital download for only $18.06 via the link above, or the same tracks are also available via a physical copy of the CD, which costs just over a dollar more, at $19.15. These prices are unbelievable, and the proceeds are going to an amazing cause, so please make this one of the albums that you really invest in. Because of the charitable nature of the proceeds of this album, I will not be providing any links or downloads of full versions of any of the songs.

Late Night With Jimmy Fallon is starting RIGHT NOW, so go watch!

If you become a follower up on the upper left of your screen, and leave a comment below, you just mayyyyyyyy be entering yourself in a drawing for a chance to win a pre-order copy of that album! So go do that before you watch The Avett Brothers!

Happy Martin Luther King, Jr. Day!

2012-01-16T19:46:00.001-05:00

Dr. King was a prime example of peaceful protest, and we'd like to show our thanks for his life's work. He fought for equality with knowledge and genuine words, not weapons.

Thank you Dr. King.

Pay It Forward.

2012-01-13T12:42:00.003-05:00

Friday morning, while waiting on the subway platform, I noticed a seemingly perplexed tourist, with an upside-down map of New York City, attempting to find his own direction. He approached a middle-aged woman who politely apologized in half-broken English, and said that she didn't know how to help him. I walked over and said, "Do you need directions? It depends where you're going, but I might be able to help you." It turns out I knew which train to advise him to take, and which stop to get off at. He thanked me and I gave him a pat on the shoulder and said, "you're very welcome.. you have a good day, my friend." Now, normally I wouldn't just pat any old stranger on the shoulder, but something told me that this disheveled man could really use a little bit of human contact.

I didn't think anything much of what I had done; I had simply shared words with a friendly man who needed a little guidance in order to get to where he was going. I quickly realized however, that I had left this gentleman absolutely dumbfounded. He responded, "I can't believe you've been so friendly and helpful, thank you so much, what a breath of fresh air." I guess he was expecting the "stereotypical New Yorker" who doesn't have time for anything or anyone, but I try not to be "that guy." It turns out, I was running about five minutes behind schedule and I knew that I would be a few minutes late for my 10:45am meeting, but whether or not I chose to help this man, I had to wait on the platform for the subway regardless. So, why not pass the time by helping out another human being in need?

It turns out, this man was unfortunately headed to go visit a loved one who is in Lenox Hill Hospital right now. I want to make one thing clear: I'm not writing this article to advertise my own random act of kindness, but my encounter with this man on the subway platform left me feeling like I really made a difference in this stranger's life, even if just for a few minutes.

I've been on both sides of this type of human exchange plenty of times, but this was nothing compared to the time I had to play narrator via the red EMERGENCY button that allows you to converse directly with the train's conductor (you know the red button I'm talking about; it's the one you always kind of want to press every time you look at it but you wouldn't dare, and when you really think about it, you know that there's really nothing particularly enjoyable about pressing a tiny button on a gigantic underground train.)

So enough with the cliffhanger, I won't keep you in the dark any longer, dear reader. Long story short, "WATCH THE GAP" or as the English say, "MIND THE GAP" (I personally prefer "MIND THE GAP".. maybe because it just sounds more thoughtful, or maybe it's for the same reason I spell "theatre" with the E at the end, or "grey" is always with an E in my personal writing, who knows? Nonetheless, whether you decide to mind the gap, or merely watch it, I can not stress enough how important it is that you LOOK BEFORE YOU STEP. Case in point, I had just gotten onto the subway, (I believe it was an Uptown local 6 train,) and one of my 8 million fellow New Yorkers ran onto the subway just in time to catch a ride before the doors promptly closed. He was in such a hurry that he did not look where he was stepping, and he managed to step directly into the gap. One leg was perfectly fine, inside the subway train car, while the other was literally knee-deep in the gap between the train and the platform.

Long story short, it appeared at first that the train's conductor was aware of the issue and knew not to pull away until everyone had both feet firmly on the subway cars' floor. This was not the case, and the train did that little kick that it does before it starts to move down the track which I can only think to compare to the kick you feel from an automobile's transmission when you really punch that gas pedal (for example, when you're merging onto the highway and need to match the relative speed of the traffic that's not far behind you.) So, we all felt the train kick, and while two or three people tried to maneuver the stuck man's leg from the tight vice of train and platform, I hit that previously mentioned red button.

The moment I hit that button (okay, let's be honest, I hit that button about thirty times in a row, as though there was a meter I was trying to fill to the top, for fear that one timid push would mean this man would live the rest of his life with 50% less leg than before.) That very moment, the train's kick paused, and I was greeted with a surprisingly monotone "yes..?" So I frantically said into this little speaker next to the infamous red button, "DO NOT MOVE THE TRAIN, SOMEONE'S LEG IS STUCK IN THE GAP!" An MTA employee was there within 30 seconds and with the help of the other passengers who were already trying to get the man's leg free, they finally got him back on two feet, and he didn't even want to get looked at by an EMT.

Now, even with the train's "kick" suddenly pausing when I hit the emergency button, I never attributed my incredibly simple action to have been what "saved" this man's leg, let alone his life, but a few weeks later, someone that I had discussed my experience with called me up and told me, "you're not gonna believe this, but remember that day you 'stopped the train' for that guy who was stuck between the train and the platform? Well that same thing must have happened yesterday, because I'm reading an article about it right now in the paper. And let's just say.. nobody hit the emergency intercom button." Unfortunately, this person wasn't as lucky as the man that my fellow New Yorkers and I helped. Now that is something I will forever be proud of, and I'll look back and remember the day that I "saved a man's leg and possibly his life," as my father proudly put it, when I told him about my experience on the train and the phone call about the less fortunate man a few weeks later.

I believe that we are all connected as human beings, and we owe it to each other, and to ourselves, to help those in need.. whether it's simply offering directions, or saving someone's leg, or doing something truly incredible and brave, like pulling someone out of a burning building. All of these things count; goodness, kindness, and positive intentions are far more contagious than any illness I've ever bear witness to. So, I wish you all the very best in your endeavors, however big or small, and I hope that no matter how steep your obstacles get, someone is there to put a hand on your shoulder and lead you in the right direction.

Love & Light.

Elliott Smith: One Last Song

2011-11-25T08:08:00.008-05:00

Just a few short days ago, over 8 years after his untimely death, a previously unreleased recording of an original song written and performed by Elliott Smith has leaked, and I have a copy of it to share with all of you. The song is called Misery Let Me Down. It's a short song, but with Elliott, it was always about "less is more," and the man never produced anything short of true artwork. The recording was made while Elliott was paying a visit to a WMUC-FM, the student radio station at the College Park campus of the University of Maryland. Coincidentally, I've actually been there personally. Click the play button below to hear the full track via this YouTube video.

If you'd like an mp3 of the song for personal use, please leave a comment along with an e-mail address and I will personally send you an mp3 of the version that I have, which includes about 15 seconds of Elliott speaking in the beginning, and just a very brief mumble at the end about warming up his voice. Hearing him speak and then immediately going into the song, since I've been listening to his music for several years now, but rarely listen to recordings of him speaking, since his death, is really chilling at times.

Elliott Smith, the Nebraska born singer-songwriter (originally born Steven Paul Smith) who shaped so much of the sound that we now call the indie/alternative genre, lived a short life, dying at just 34 back in October of 2003. He lived the majority of his adult life in Portland, Oregon but most of his childhood he was raised in Texas.

He was a musician in every sense of the word. He wrote his own songs, his own music and accompaniment, and his vocals are so chillingly beautiful you can't help but get goosebumps while listening to his particularly heart-felt and often melancholy tracks. Along with his weapon of choice, the acoustic guitar, he also played bass, drums, piano, harmonica, and clarinet.

Elliott hit the peak of his career when he signed a two album record deal with Dreamworks Records. Among those entrancing songs setting the stage for a a cold and naked recanting of human suffering and the apparent curing power of love, was the single entitled Miss Misery. Elliott Smith was nominated for an Academy Award under the category of Best Original Song in 1998; a truly humbling and incredible honor and form of recognition, just to be a nominee.

If you know Elliott's music, you know him. He always sang about crippling depression and addiction, codependency, and other issues that truly did haunt him in his personal life. Just five years later, at the age of 34, Smith was found dead as the result of two stab wounds to the chest. Rumors suggesting that these wounds were not actually self-inflicted still quietly circulate the folk singer-songwriter scene to this day, but one thing is undeniable: his talent was extraordinary, his vocals will forever be hauntingly beautiful, and the art he shared with the world will never be forgotten.

If you're in Los Angeles, you have to go by Solutions Audio, where the Elliott Smith memorial is painted outside. This is where the album cover for Figure 8 was shot. Fans and members of the FMLY arts and music collective commissioned the restoration of the mural to honor Elliott's memory.

Soundtrack to my November

2011-11-10T14:49:00.006-05:00

What I've been listening to lately..
(you'll find a player at the bottom of this post to listen to each song in its entirety)

Margot and The Nuclear So & So's - "Broadripple Is Burning"

This song is a few years old, but I just started listening to this band and they're incredible. I had to share them with you guys.

Margot & The Nuclear So & So's - "New York City Hotel Blues"

One more example of the "less is more" stylings of a great indie band, mixed with some New York City vibes i can certainly relate to.

Drake - "Look What You've Done"

His new album 'Take Care' leaked 2 days ago, and after listening to the whole thing, i think this is my favorite track on the record. He talks about real life and shows the human side of his music/lyrics. This song can be about romantic love or family love, it applies to both sides of the spectrum.
My favorite quote from this song is: "You love me and i love you, and your heart hurts, mine does too. And it's just words and they cut deep but it's our world, it's just us two. I see painkillers on the kitchen counter, i hate to see it hurts so bad."

Childish Gambino - "L.E.S."

On a lighter note, here's Childish Gambino's (aka Donald Glover) ode to New York City's Lower East Side, along with some Hipster references (both positive & negitive)

Death Cab For Cutie - "Codes & Keys (Yeasayer Remix)"

The official "Codes & Keys" Remix EP won't be out for another 11 days, but i got a hold of this Yeasayer Remix to share with you Death Cab fans. The EP will also feature other artists including.. 2 bears, Cut Copy, RAC Maury, and Ulrich Schnauss (among others.)

Sigur Rós – “Lúppulagið”

This Tuesday, the 15th, Sigur Rós will be releasing their new album 'Inni'. Here's a precviously unreleased studio recording of Lúppulagið. In case you were wondering, it means "Loop Song" in Icelandic.

Get Your Own Free Hypster.com Playlist.

A word to the wise...

2011-10-20T15:54:00.005-04:00

"Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes.

Art is knowing which ones to keep."

-Scott Adams

"People write their wishes on paper lanterns, light them, and launch them into the sky in the belief that they will come true." I'd like to think that's true; it's hard to imagine that something so beautiful would lack the ability to guide an honest, good-intentioned wish to the powers that be. The man explaining the purpose of the lanterns is Sheng-Fa Lin, a man from Taipei, Taiwan who took the above photograph. He calls it Flying Lantern. The picture was taken at the Lantern Festival in Pingxi, a town in northern Taiwan.

The above photograph is property of Sheng-Fa Lin, and is being displayed on Artistic Resistance under Creative Commons licensing. His photography can be viewed at this address.

UPDATE: Washington Square Park Protestors

2011-10-16T10:03:00.004-04:00

The above video belongs to the YouTube user (Rohanharkinson) clearly stated at the top of the viewer.
I do not own or claim to own any rights to this video and am only relaying it onto you readers as a third party.

This video was taken at 12 midnight EST in the center of Washington Square Park, New York City, NY. Note the riot police in full gear, prepared to engage the protesters if they did not leave the park immediately. The cameraman was smart enough to leave, and the police officer in the light blue jacket was very polite and considerate of the rights of each of the protesters that were present there. The park was officially closed at midnight, so the police officers did have the legal authority to ask the demonstrators to leave. The officer that first approached the group was calm, polite, and stated the exact reason as to why the group was being asked to disperse and exit the park. You could tell that some of the other officers seemed more inclined to just arrest the camera operator while he was trying to exit the park from the South end.

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, it would be nice to have more officers like the one in the beginning of this video who treated the protesters with respect, specifically commented on the fact that he understands their voice and appreciates their decision to exercise their rights. He also said towards the end, "why get arrested?" and "we just want to go home, it's already midnight." Which was a moment of connection between the two parties, regardless of their stance or whether or not they were uniformed police officers or just a group of civilians.

BREAKING NEWS: Occupy Wall Street

2011-10-15T17:49:00.005-04:00

While the exact details of this incident are not yet known, what we know so far is that TWENTY or more protesters have been arrested inside the LaGuardia Place branch of Citibank. An estimated fifty people entered the bank location with the intention of closing their bank accounts, in an effort to make a statement about their disgust for the United States' financial crisis, and the portion of fault belonging to the banks themselves.

Right now, protesters are preparing to start their march starting at Washington Square and culminating at Times Square later this evening. The non-violent, peaceful means of protest, choosing to go into one of their bank's various branches, and ultimately closing their accounts, have been treated as though they were criminal acts. I personally have seen footage from just minutes ago, where at least two people were arrested after leaving the bank. One woman in particular was first approached by a plain-clothes undercover police officer who briefly said to her "you were inside ... you were inside with everybody else." I clearly heard the woman respond to the uncover officer repeatedly, but in a calm and respectful manner, "I am a customer." She also had paperwork in her hand which appeared to have been given to her by an employee of the bank branch before she had left the building.

The young woman was not in any way acting aggressively, and she responded to the plain-clothes police officer when approached. She did not try to "flee the scene." Despite the fact that it was clear that there was no crime being committed in the first place, she did stick around to respond to the officer. After he repeatedly said "you were in there with everybody else," to her, as if he was suggesting that being inside of your bank, during regular business hours, for the purpose of speaking with a bank employee in regards to your bank account is suddenly illegal, he forcefully grabbed her and detained her. Excessive force was used, despite the fact that this poor young woman had not committed any crime, was not interfering with the police officer's "investigation," and was not causing a scene whatsoever. At least one other individual was approached in the same manner, after leaving the bank, and was also detained completely against their will and without cause.

At one point, the bank was actually locked down, keeping the people inside, and that reportedly is when the majority of the 20+ arrests took place. Some sources are now saying that the estimate the arrest total at about 23. As far as I'm aware at this point of the evening, all these people were doing was simply walking into the bank and attempting to close their bank accounts. Most, if not all, of the bank customers in question, have reportedly been charged with crimes such as criminal trespassing. Good luck explaining that one in court, guys. I've never heard of anyone being charged with criminal trespassing because they entered the bank where they are an established customer, and asked to close their bank account. The NYPD is going to have to think of a better story if they want to keep arresting New Yorkers that are choosing to take a stand and make a statement through non-violent, peaceful acts of protest.

I'd like to point out that I have heard reports and seen footage of a very small amount of protesters ignoring direct orders from police officers and/or committing minor offenses such as disturbing the peace, and therefore being arrested. I am not trying to tell you that every one of these protesters is staying within the limits of the law, or that all of the police officers in these locations are abusing their powers. What I am saying, however, is that the vast majority of these protesters are exercising their rights to protest, and their legal right to freedom of speech. I have seen and heard of far too many NYPD police officers abusing their power, using excessive force, and making unlawful arrests.

Earlier today, I saw two different videos that showed an NYPD police officer on a motor scooter literally driving into crowds of people, and at one point, the officer drove right into a cameraman and proceeded to drive directly over the man's legs. This makes me sick; these officers need to be held accountable for their actions, and I wish that the law-abiding cops were doing more to uphold the integrity of the NYPD by holding these corrupt cops responsible for their gross misconduct and completely illegal and dangerous actions.

FREE Original Art Giveaway

2011-10-08T12:37:00.006-04:00

Photo is licensed under Creative Commons and was taken by Longzero

So, one of the various things I've been doing lately in terms of my art, is making collages. The collages (for the most part) are made up of words, letters, numbers, symbols, photographs, magazine cut-outs, and freehand drawings all combined together, on everything from white printer paper, to recycled cardboard. They all generally have specific themes and messages that go along with them, and each one is 100% unique. No two are the same.

There have been more and more readers visiting Artistic Resistance lately, and I wanted to try to do something for you, the "audience." It's funny, because sometimes when I look at a webpage, I make assumptions about their reader-base according to the number of comments I see underneath each post. You however, my friends, don't seem like much of a commenting crowd. Lately it's gotten a bit more popular, which I'm very happy to see, but I'd love for there to be TONS and TONS of more comments. And I promise to write back to each and every one of you that writes to me here.

Just to give you an idea, as of the time that I'm typing this sentence, there have been 307 viewers to visit this site just in the past 12 HOURS alone. For some websites/bloggers, that's not really much to celebrate, but to me, a completely independent writer without ANY additional writers, contributors, and with ZERO advertising, those are figures I'm really proud of. That means our audience is solely coming via word-of-mouth, and from people doing Google searches that happen to be related to topics and keywords associated with these articles.

Previously, I had tried to put together a little contest for one lucky Artistic Resistance reader to win 2 FREE advanced-screening passes to a movie that was not yet even in theatres, but the contest really didn't go the way I had planned. The main reason that I think it didn't become popular was because I didn't really allow for enough time before the actual screening would be taking place. Also, I had specifically mentioned that in order to screen the film, you would have to be in the proximity of New York City (because that's where the theatre was located.) Out of the people that I do know personally, who often seem to enjoy discussing the latest articles I've posted, a handful of them asked me specifically about the screening passes. They were wondering who won them, and said things like "ah, I would have loved to go to that!" Well, all I really could say to that was, "why didn't you enter to win the tickets?!"

So here's the new idea I had. During this past week I've made three completed pieces, and I'm in the process of finishing a fourth, which is taking a bit longer because of its size and the material its made of. I'm only going to do this if there is enough of an interest being expressed by you, the readers, but I'd like to COMPLETELY RANDOMLY pool together the names of those that are interested in winning, and pick out 1-3 winners to receive one of these collage pieces that I've been creating. Each one is made by hand, completely by me, and is given a lot of time and thought. The winner(s) will be RANDOMLY selected. Whether or not I know you personally, you have an equal chance of winning, because I'm just going to put each entry into a program that shuffles the names randomly, and that's how the winner(s) will be selected. I'll also sign the piece for you as well, and if you want me to inscribe the back, I'd be happy to do that.

IF YOU'RE INTERESTED IN ENTERING TO WIN AN ORIGINAL SIGNED PIECE OF MY ARTWORK, ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS...
1). Go up to the top left of this page and register as a SUBSCRIBER/FOLLOWER of Artistic Resistance.

2). Contact me either by commenting on THIS blog post (dated: Saturday, October 8th), -OR- by clicking on the "View Profile" button on the left sidebar, and sending me an e-mail by following the instructions that should be given right through there. **I know some of you have expressed that you prefer remaining anonymous on the actual webpage; I completely respect your privacy and I'm not going to push you to do anything differently.**

Once you've become a SUBSCRIBER/FOLLOWER of the blog, and left a comment or e-mail with at least a first name (or a nickname is fine,) then you will be officially entered to win. No other steps needed. Deadline, for now, is TO BE DETERMINED.
IF YOU ARE ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER, YOU CAN JUST LEAVE A COMMENT.
I HAVE THE LIST OF WHO IS ALREADY SUBSCRIBED.

Question of the Week

2011-09-29T04:31:00.001-04:00

survey solutions

Do What You Can (Part Two)

2011-09-28T06:54:00.003-04:00

**UPDATE**

I should note that I had typed up that last post immediately following my encounter with the young man mentioned below. After I had briefly checked for any spelling and grammatical errors, I posted the blog entry from my phone, and went back to listening to some music, catching up on my 'Words With Friends' games, etc. As I mentioned earlier, this trip required taking two trains: the first one from New York City to a town on Long Island, and then the second train which I and the rest of the passengers boarded a few short minutes after that train had dropped us off, to take us the rest of the way to our respective towns. When I got off the train at my station, which happened to be about 2 hours after my rather brief encounter with my disgruntled fellow passenger, I wasn't really paying much attention to the other people around me. All of a sudden, I was forced to stop walking because I abruptly noticed that there was someone not only standing right in front of me, but also looking straight at me. It was the guy from the first train. I honestly had no idea what he was going to do or say (if anything) but I looked up from coiling up my headphones chord and saw that his fist was pointed right at me. I'll admit, this took me a second to evaluate what was happening, especially since when I had first met this stranger, he was anything but pleased to be in my company. He then made it clear that I was "leaving him hanging," so to speak, and I realized what was really going on.

He must have kept thinking about our verbal exchange, our discussion about good and bad, the idea that things have a funny way of working out for the best, and so on, the entire rest of the trip. I slowly lifted up my right arm, made a fist, and connected my hand with his. We each had a ring on the same finger of the hand we had raised, and they lightly pinged together.. an audible connection between myself and this stranger who just 2 hours before, had wanted nothing to do with me. Proof of our casual but deliberate recognition of one another and the surprisingly powerful exchange that had taken place between he and I. He looked me in the eyes, nodded his head with a look of closure and respect, and we headed our separate directions. When I first wrote about this young guy and my interaction with him, I spoke of how these seemingly mundane connections can sometimes truly speak volumes to one or both of the parties involved. This theory may not always prove to be true, but in this case, it was made clear that we both left having gained something from one another. So.. do what you can, if an opportunity presents itself; and don't do it as part of a hunt for personal gain, just wait and see what happens in your unique situation. You may be pleasantly surprised.

Do What You Can

2011-09-24T19:20:00.002-04:00

As I write this, I'm sitting on a train, about half-way through a two hour trip. The subway I had planned to take to get to this train had been unexpectedly shut down, so I decided to get off at the closest East Side station and walk the rest of the way to the West Side. I knew this would really be pushing it for time, but I just planned to do my best to catch my train.

Armed with a well-practiced New York speed-walk, and the muscle memory to fly through the touchscreen ticket purchase, I made it onto the train just in time. Finding a seat that was vacant and wasn't between a family of four or made impossible by someone that's morbidly obese took a few minutes but I finally found my own side of a four-seater, facing another guy about my age who sat in the seat diagonal from me.

As I sat down, I offered a little smirk and one of those casual "half-nods." A few beats later I heard a muffled "ugh.. seriously..?" Not knowing what he was referring to, I made eye-contact and simply responded "what..?" He stared at me for a good twenty seconds, wide-eyed, and then finally motioning to my ticket, saying "I'm stuck wit' yo' ass the whole ride man.." Caught a bit off-guard, I wasn't quite sure what to say. "Well, this train only goes half the way there, then there's a connecting train anyway. This train's really crowded too, we're both lucky to have this amount of room."

I honestly think he expected me to just shrug out of defeat or fear (or both) and get up without a word, but I didn't see him as a threat.. maybe just a misguided young guy with a relative lack of a vocal filter. He took what felt like three minutes to take in what I had just said, and then responded "Yeah man.. you know what? You're right. I've just had a really bad day. It's all good, I do have plenty of room. Sometimes I just question the universe and I wonder if there's any reason for days like that, you know?" Now this dialogue might sound too whimsical to be a true account, but I promise you, that really is what he said, and it happened only minutes ago so there's no necessity for artistic licensing.

I processed this unexpected reaction of his, and the best I could come up with was "It's alright, I understand where you're coming from. But if you understand that your day went the way it did for a reason, then you'll understand that maybe you needed those experiences. Sometimes something seems completely mundane but it happens for a very particular reason, in terms of your overall timeline."

I guess the biggest reason why I decided to post this for all of you was because it made me think about the whole "strangers on a train" phenomena (not so much in regards to the film, although the original black and white version is worth watching.) In a city of 8 million people, it only takes a one-time exchange with a complete stranger to alter your mindset. It'd be unrealistic for me to say that 100% of these interactions are beneficial, but having been on both sides of the spectrum, I strongly believe in the power and meaning of chance.

The experience that comes to mind right now was when I was in the hospital a few months back and this Emergency Room Nurse that wasn't even assigned to me just made eye-contact with me and decided to walk over to my bed. We ended up talking for about fifteen minutes and we talked about things that really stuck with me.. about life, love, friendship, family, and New York City. About 2-3 weeks ago, I passed her on the street and her eyes lit up with clouded but certain recognition. I gave her a nod and a smile and disappeared back into the crowd, but I'll never forget what she told me. That, my friends, is a story for another day.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone

True Blood Season 4 Episode 5

2011-07-25T04:03:00.005-04:00

"I Hate You, I Love You"

Synopsis:

Lafayette goes to Mexico with Jesus to witness the power of a shaman; Bill becomes personally involved with the necromancy problem; Arlene and Terry hope religion can resolve a family issue; Sam teams up with Tommy.

Click Here to watch the latest episode of True Blood!
Season 4 Episode 5: "I Love You, I Hate You"
(Original Airdate Sunday July 24th @ 9pm EST)

Amy Winehouse Dead at 27

2011-07-23T16:43:00.005-04:00

Say what you will about Amy Winehouse (most people have made more than a few stabs at her), but I'd like to do my part in helping to ensure that her death doesn't go without any real meaning or opportunity for enlightenment. The five-time Grammy award winning singer that smoothly blended up her own version of music that included influences of jazz, soul, blues, R&B, and Rock 'n' Roll fought a very public battle with addiction, which she ultimately lost today. The 27 year old recording artist was found dead by police in her home in Camden, London today, after police received a 3:54pm BST (British Summer Time) call for an ambulance. She was formally pronounced dead by Metropolitan Police shortly after.

We see these types of stories of celebrities and their addictions on a daily basis whether it's on TV, in the tabloids, online, etc. but we often don't stop for a moment to think about the fact that these people, however famous, however wealthy, however presented to the public.. are real people like you and I. At twenty-something, I've already had more than my fair share of experiences with friends and acquaintances that have fought the battle of addiction; some have lived to form a new healthy lifestyle, while others are now a memory. The truth of the matter is, addiction is an illness, whether the issue is alcohol, illegal drugs, prescription drugs, or behavioral addictions (forgive me if I've left anything out.. they are ALL significant.)

Please take this young, talented artist's untimely, unfortunate, and unnecessary death as a wake-up call if someone that you care about or you yourself are fighting the battle of addiction, trying to cure yourself or your loved one of this horrible and unforgiving disease. If you have the opportunity to help someone or yourself, take it. We all deserve that much. The most common thing that I've seen on the web this afternoon while preparing to write this blog post was that Amy Winehouse's final age of 27 is all too familiar to us music fans. Kurt Cobain, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Jimi Hendrix, all legendary artists that defined their time through their music, their art form, all died at the age of 27 and all battled sincere problems with addiction. I am not trying to tell you that this is a conspiracy; I don't think that is what this is. I just think that we need to remember all of those that have passed due to this preventable, treatable, curable disease, regardless of whether they were in the public eye or not.

Remember, your talents are too big, too important, and too beautiful to gamble your life away on drugs.

**One last thing I'd like to add is that I don't mean to speculate, although perhaps I already have, but it seems that essentially all of the media sources have taken the liberty to credit Winehouse's addictions to her death. Technically, there has not yet been an official cause of death ruled, and there is an autopsy scheduled for tomorrow, July 24th, in London.**

Weeds Season 7 Episode 4

2011-07-19T00:09:00.005-04:00

"A Hole In Her Niqab"

(Original Airdate: Monday July 18th 9pm EST on Showtime)

Synopsis:

Nancy tries for a job at Doug's new office; Shane sets up their new house.

Click Here to watch the latest episode of Weeds!

Most of you probably know how DivX Player and the VidX website work, but in case you haven't used them before... the page you'll be redirected to requires you to click on where it says "Verify That You Are Human," and then you'll be taken to the video window. Click on where it says "Hide Ad and Play Video" to start watching your show!

If you use Artistic Resistance as your source this or any other shows, please leave a quick comment letting me know that you were happy with what was posted; comments mean a lot.

**PLEASE BE AWARE** A DivX Player error message is showing up periodically before you start the video; just ignore that. I test every single link personally before publishing any posts. In the event that this link (or any others on Artistic Resistance) ever seem to later be down, please let me know and I will replace it/them with a working link immediately. And one last thing.. you will obviously need to have the DivX plugin on your computer in order to view any DivX videos. If you do not already have the plugin, the video window above will automatically offer you a free download; it's quick and easy!

True Blood Season 4 Episode 4

2011-07-18T03:55:00.003-04:00

"I'm Alive And On Fire"

Synopsis:

Alcide joins Sookie in her search for Eric; Marnie needs help breaking a spell; Bill finds something in common with the Bellefleurs; Jason pleads for his freedom from Hotshot; Sam tries to learn more about Luna; Tommy gets back to his roots.

Click Here to watch the latest episode of True Blood!
Season 4 Episode 4: "I'm Alive And On Fire"
(Original Airdate Sunday July 17th @ 9pm EST)

This is a High Quality Streaming DivX video with no time limit!

Advanced Screening Pass Giveaway!

2011-07-14T16:49:00.003-04:00

We're giving away 2 ADVANCED SCREENING PASSES to see the movie "Attack The Block" in New York City this Tuesday, July 19th. This is a full 10 DAYS before it's released to the public. If you win, you will get both passes so you can bring a friend. All you have to do to be entered to win is two things. First, click on the link in the top left of your screen where it says "Join this site" and become a follower of Artistic Resistance. The second thing you have to do is just leave a comment below on this post with the e-mail address you used when you became a follower, your first name, and the first letter of your last name (just so we can keep track of the entries.)

IF YOU ARE THE WINNER, WE WILL CONTACT YOU.

Contest ends Saturday the 16th at 12pm EST. Good luck!

Trailer:

CLICK HERE to read reviews of the film, along with a brief synopsis

NYPD Goes Electric

2011-07-13T06:19:00.026-04:00

Although the Mayor's comments regarding the financial crisis, as well as his concerns pertaining to the health and safety of the New York City residents during this particularly hot weather were certainly relevant and important, I decided to break up my response to the press conference into two parts. This way, the information is more spread out and there's less thrown at you all at once. As mentioned in the previous post, Mayor Michael Bloomberg had a few things that he came to discuss at his press conference yesterday where he was accompanied by Stephen Goldsmith (Deputy Mayor for Operations), David Bragdon (Director of the Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability), and Edna Wells Handy (Commissioner of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services.)

The last and (I think) most interesting issue that the Mayor brought to the table was a big announcement regarding electric vehicles, and their growing use in New York City. The City of New York already has over 360 electric vehicles being used right now for various government-run programs and services. This number is higher than any other city in the country. Tuesday's announcement marked the largest single addition of electric vehicles ever to the city's fleet. This announcement came as part of the Mayor's "plaNYC agenda to create a cleaner and greener New York City," Bloomberg told the crowd.

The Mayor further explained that NYC.gov will soon have its own separate website dedicated to electric vehicles and their benefits (both immediate and long-term, financial and health-related.) The website will not only feature information pertaining to the city's own fleet of government-owned and operated electric vehicles, but it will also be a resource for residents that are considering purchasing an electric car but would like to get more information before making the decision. The Mayor quoted a study in which results showed that New Yorkers (when in the market for a new car) were "20% more likely to buy an electric car once they've learned more about them."

Now, to the specifics. As of yesterday, Mayor Bloomberg reported that the City of New York was "completing receipt of 50 new extended-range hybrid Chevy Volts, 10 fully-electric Transit Connect Cargo Vans, 2 fully-electric Navistar eStar Utility Trucks (with another 8 more Utility Trucks coming in next week, for a total of 10.)

With the addition of these 70 total electric vehicles being added to the New York City government's fleet, the number of electric vehicles being used by the City will increase by roughly 20%. These vehicles will be utilized by the Department of Sanitation, the NYPD and the Department of Corrections, the FDNY, the Department of Environmental Protection, the Department of Transportation, City-Wide Administrative Services, the Parks Department, and the Taxi & Limousine Commission.

The Chevy Volt in particular is capable of operating completely on battery without having to even turn on the "back-up gas engine" for a reported average range of about 40-50 miles on one battery charge. These figures are rough estimates, and can vary depending on the particular driver, the average speed and acceleration, etc. The Mayor made an effort to point out the plans for the Chevy Volt in particular: "our goal is replacing a significant portion of light-duty vehicles which make up nearly half of the almost 27,000 vehicle city fleet with such Electric powered cars, vans, and trucks."

The Mayor went on to explain that on average, these light-duty vehicles each travel no more than about 35 miles total in one day. Of course on occasion, this number might be a little bit higher, but if that estimate is correct, picture it this way.. that means, if the entire current fleet of light-duty vehicles were eventually replaced one by one with Chevy Volts, it would be feasible to say that about 13,500 (50% of the total 27,000 city vehicle fleet) would be using ZERO gasoline on an almost-daily basis. This concept just really blows my mind, but I'm so pleased to see that we have someone in office like Mayor Bloomberg that cares enough about this city and the environment to start to do something about it now, so that eventually we can get to the point where oil dependance is an old habit that nobody likes to talk about anymore. I know this is not going to be an overnight change by any means, but think about how much cleaner the air could be if we stuck to this course of action. It's a fight forth fighting.

Links:

To watch the full press conference speech delivered by Mayor Bloomberg click here.
(the link is working, not to mention ad-free, it's just not large picture or ideal quality.)

For the Mayor's Office official "News from the Blue Room" press release, Click Here.

** The individual vehicle links listed in the above article are reposted here below for your convenience**

Chevrolet Volt........ Click Here

Transit Connect Cargo Van........ Click Here

Navistar eStar Utility Truck....... Click Here

Mayor Bloomberg's 7/12 Press Conference (Part One)

2011-07-13T04:00:00.013-04:00

Yesterday, Tuesday July 12th, Mayor Michael Bloomberg conducted a press conference inside one of the New York City Sanitation Department's parking garages. He was accompanied by Deputy Mayor for Operations Stephen Goldsmith, Director of the Mayor's Office of Long-Term Planning & Sustainability David Bragdon, and Edna Wells Handy, Commissioner of the Department of Citywide Administrative Services, along with various members of the press. I think my invitation got lost in the mail.

The mayor did briefly touch on a few other topics such as the budget deficit, about which he said the following: "New York City's economy is on the mend of 2008, but defaulting on our debt, I think, would be a huge setback. Now, I understand that both parties in Washington had different plans on how to reduce our debt, and I hope that they can come to an agreement soon, but that debate should not be tied to the debt ceiling. America's good name and credit are just too important to be held hostage to Washington's gridlock, and I hope that in the end cooler heads will prevail and agreements will be reached quickly."

The other important (much more temporary and localized) issue that the Mayor wanted to make sure he addressed was the current heat wave going on here in New York City. The National Weather Service declared a Heat Advisory effective through 9p.m. yesterday. Yesterday got up to almost 100 degrees in parts of the city and with the humidity levels so high, it certainly felt as hot, if not hotter. The mayor went on to mention the 450 "cooling centers" that officially opened Tuesday in Senior Centers, Libraries, Public Housing Developments, Salvation Army Communities Centers, and other various public locations throughout the five boroughs that were not specifically mentioned in his address. A lot of people take this kind of service for granted, but for those that can not afford air-conditioning and/or fans for their home, or for those who unfortunately do not have a place to call home, these cooling centers could mean the difference between life and death (when you consider the risk of heatstrokes, dehydration, etc.) For outdoor options, the public beaches and swimming pools are open to the public from 10am to 6pm. For more information you can call 311 or visit NYC.gov.

True Blood Season 4 Episode 3

2011-07-10T23:56:00.003-04:00

Click Here to watch the latest episode of True Blood!

Season 4 Episode 3: "If You Love Me, Why Am I Dyin'?"

Google+ is Here!

2011-07-10T21:19:00.006-04:00

Hey everyone! Tonight's post is just a very quick sidenote. I just started using Google+ the other day, and I don't know too much about it yet, but so far it looks like a cleaner, more user-friendly version of Facebook. One of my favorite features is the ability to videochat with a whole bunch of friends at the same time (more users than any other free website or software I've ever seen before.)

The demand Google has been receiving for Plus accounts has been very high, so they currently are still not allowing new users to just register for an account on the website. In order to get an account, you must be invited by a current user and follow an invitation link that they can send to you; all they need in order to invite you is your e-mail address.

If any of you would like me to send you an invitation, I'd be more than happy to do so. All you have to do is just submit a comment on today's blog entry with your e-mail address. Whether you're a regular follower of Artistic Resistance, or you just stumbling on this page for the first time, I always love to have new readers, as well as those of you that have been keeping up with the blog for quite a while now. It's always a good feeling when I run into someone and they mention something about my blog, so thank you all for that. I'm really determined to start writing on here a lot more now. I know I've said that before, but I've just been so busy recently with a lot of different things going on to keep me more than occupied. Please come back, and spread the word!

Once again, if you would like me to send you an invite to Google+ all you have to do is leave a comment on today's post with your e-mail address (some people have been asking, it does NOT have to be a Gmail account.) Also, if you know of someone else that's been waiting for an invite, feel free to refer them to Artistic Resistance and I'd be happy to set them up with one as well.

Hope you all have a really great week, and I promise you'll be hearing from me again at least once before the end of the week. If you guys are interested in me making a post specifically about Google+ (whether it's a general overview, or a tutorial, etc.) please let me know in the comments below, and if there's enough interest in the topic, I'd be happy to do that for you guys.

Music Monday

2011-05-23T01:47:00.002-04:00

This track was just leaked by Mike Posner who has apparently been working on some sick covers in the studio lately. Below you'll find a link to listen to his cover of Coldplay's 'The Scientist' in its entirety.

The Scientist (Mike Posner Remix) by jarcher28

First Love

2011-05-08T21:02:00.003-04:00

The following is quite possibly one of the most charming things I've ever seen in my entire life.. If these two don't end up getting married, I'm going to lose the entirety of my faith in humanity. Their names are Elliott and Bowie.

Mea Culpa

2011-03-16T15:31:00.005-04:00

"And I don't remember the exact moment everything changed, I just know that it did. One minute I was impenetrable; nothing could touch me. The next, my heart was somehow beating outside my chest, exposed to the elements. Loving you has been the most profound, intense, painful experience of my life. In fact, it's been almost too much to bare..."

- Hank Moody

2011-01-07T21:47:00.001-05:00

I want to be a lost poem in a stranger's coat pocket, that conveys the importance of you; to assure you of my desire, to assure you of dreams. I want all the possibilities of you in writing. I want to give you your reflection. I want your eyes on me. I want to travel to the lightness with you and stay and there and I want everything before you to follow us like a trail behind me. I want never to say goodbye to you; even on the street corner or the phone. I want so much.. I'm breathless. I want to put my power into a poem to burn a hole in your pocket, so I can sew it. I want my words to scream through you. I want the poem not to mean that much, and I want to contradict myself by accident, and for you to know what I mean. I want for you to be distant and for me to feel you close. I want endless day when it's day and nighttime never to end when it's night. I want all the seasons in one day. I want the sun to set before us and come up in front of us. I want water up to our waists and I want to be drenched by the rain up to our ankles with holes in our shoes. I want to think your thoughts because they're mine. I want only what's urgent with you. I want to get in the way of the barriers and I want you to be tough when you're supposed to, like you do already. And I want you to be tender, like you do already. And I want us to have met for a reason, and for that reason to be important. And I want it to be bigger than us, I want it to take over us. I want to forget, I want to remember us. And when you say you love me, I don't want to think you really mean New York City, and all the fun we have in it. And I want your smile always, and your grimaces too. I want your scar on my lips, and I want your disappointments in my heart. I want your strength in my soul and I want your soul in my eyes. I want to believe everything you say.. and I do. And I want you to tell me what's best when I don't know. And when you're lost I want to find you. And when you're weary, I want to give you steeples and cathedral thoughts, coliseum dreams. I want to drag you from the darkness, and kneel with you, exhausted with the blinding light blaring on us.

New Year Through the Same Eyes

2011-01-03T04:38:00.005-05:00

So it's a new year, isn't it? Which brings across thoughts of memories past, moments not yet experienced, maybe a couple resolutions.. just lots of thoughts I guess. I'm on Long Island for a little while now; a couple weeks I guess. I've been doing my best to keep up with my creative writing (my poetry, prose, etc.) and I'm thinking about looking into doing a LI reading but I'm not sure yet. The NYC readings have gone so well that I'd really like to keep up with doing these readings.

Some people who follow the blog have been asking me to add some of the new material on here. I'm not sure if I'm going to do that yet. I might want to keep the material fresh for readings for a little while first. Whether or not I do a reading on Long Island before I head back to Manhattan, I'll definitely be reading in the city soon. I'm trying to work out as many cool places as possible, so I promise you'll all be the first ones to know about that, and if you're going to be in the NYC area I'd love to have you there. The reading at Kouzan was an incredible experience; the love and support I received there from friends, loved ones, colleagues, and mentors was just overwhelming, in the best way possible. Not to mention, having our own private room in such a nice venue was a great set-up for us.

So with all of that being said, please continue to check back and look for updates on either my writing, or the other material and issues I discuss on the blog. If you haven't already, please take the time to officially become a follower (it's super easy and quick, I promise.)

One last thing.. a lot of people have been asking me what I've been reading lately since I haven't blogged specifically about any particular books lately. I'll probably be finishing Kerouac's 'Big Sur' by the end of Tuesday I believe. That's another great book of his, I'll make a separate post about that, so I won't get into it now. In the meantime I've also started reading some of Marcel Proust. Him I could probably blog about for a month, there's a lot of everything there between his personal life and his written work.

Happy New Year, I wish you all the best in 2011.. health, happiness, success, and so much more.

Merry Christmas 2010

2010-12-25T14:27:00.003-05:00

For those of you that celebrate, I'd like to wish you all a very Merry/Happy Christmas.

I hope that you all enjoy the day with family, friends, and loved ones, and remember that what's really important is what you give that doesn't come with a receipt; it's about giving love, friendship, compassion, understanding.. all those things that you can and should offer to everyone you know. Especially the ones you really care about. That being said, enjoy your day, the people around you, and the spirit of the season; and give your love, even when it isn't the easiest thing to do. Merry Christmas and Happy (belated) Chanukah.

I wish you nothing short of peace and happiness.

Singer-Songwriter Jay Brannan

2010-12-21T15:34:00.002-05:00

Click here to watch the very talented Jay Brannan perform his original songs live right now via Ustream. Jay is a NYC-based singer-songwriter. I wanted to make this a quick post because I'm not sure how long his set will be going on for, and I wanted any of you that had the time to enjoy his great music. I've had the pleasure of meeting Jay and spending a bit of time talking to him and he's truly a really nice guy; incredibly humble.

Poetry Reading Monday (12/20)

2010-12-18T00:38:00.003-05:00

685 Amsterdam Avenue

New York, NY 10025

I'll be doing a reading of some of my original poetry at the restaurant Kouzan on the Upper West Side of Manhattan this coming Monday, the 20th, starting at 6:30pm. I'll be reading with a handful of published writers/authors/poets (probably about six,) and we'll have our own private room of the restaurant for those who are reading, and their guests, at least until 8pm; then the room will be open to other patrons, but the manager has already said the reading may continue after that time. If you're interested in attending, please let me know ahead of time; I'm nervous enough as it is, so I'm not dying for any surprises. The restaurant is located at 93rd & Amsterdam. There's no cover charge, but please plan on ordering at least one drink or something to eat; the manager has been kind enough to offer us the room free of charge. Click here to get more information about the restaurant, including full food and drink menus.

Vote to Repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell"

2010-12-17T14:17:00.003-05:00

This is a quick post, but an important one. Tomorrow (Saturday the 18th) the United States Senate will be taking a vote on whether or not to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." Below is a link to a page that will provide you with the opportunity to petition your local Senator to vote in favor of repealing this ignorant Act.

Click here for more information regarding how you can help make a difference.

30th Anniversary of John Lennon's Death

2010-12-08T17:57:00.003-05:00

Rest In Peace John Lennon, your music and your messages of peace still live on.

11.30.10

2010-11-30T12:40:00.003-05:00

"People are afraid of themselves, of their own reality; their feelings most of all. People talk about how great love is, but that's bullshit. Love hurts. Feelings are disturbing. People are taught that pain is evil and dangerous. How can they deal with love if they're afraid to feel? Pain is meant to wake us up. People try to hide their pain. But they're wrong. Pain is something to carry, like a radio. You feel your strength in the experience of pain. It's all in how you carry it. That's what matters. Pain is a feeling. Your feelings are a part of you. Your own reality. If you feel ashamed of them, and hide them, you're letting society destroy your reality. You should stand up for your right to feel your pain."

- Jim Morrison

Happy Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-25T20:01:00.004-05:00

Wishing you all a very Happy Thanksgiving

and a weekend of friends, family, loved ones, and really good food.

**Keep an eye out for a special new post by the end of the weekend**

A Song for Sunday

2010-11-21T14:29:00.003-05:00

"Chariot" by, Page Francis

[this is a fan-made video, but I thought it was kinda cool]

11.12.10

2010-11-12T01:22:00.006-05:00

it's a quarter past one

in the dreary birth of a new yawning day

the stars give light to the blurry night sky

like needle marks

through black construction paper

held up to a shy flashlight.

True Love Will Find You In The End

2010-11-09T19:15:00.003-05:00

[I don't have permission to host the video on my blog, so you can follow the link above to YouTube to watch the full music video. Believe me, I tried.]

This song has been around for a while, but I heard it for the first time last night. It played out through a really dramatic closing scene of a TV show, and I just found it really powerful. I came across this version of the song, covered by Mates of State, and thought the video was really original and definitely worth sharing with you guys. Be sure to give the original version a listen as well though. Personally I prefer the original (which was the one played on 'The Big C' last night,) and I'll share a video of that version as well below.

The original music and lyrics are by singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston. His song True Love Will Find You In The End has been covered by countless bands and solo artists, and is one of the most well known tracks in his discography. Johnston's rise in popularity can't be credited to one particular person or event; some of his exposure was actually thanks to the late Kurt Cobain of Nirvana. Kurt would often be seen wearing a t-shirt with Johnston's album artwork on the front of it, reading "Hi, How Are You."

Although Johnston used to tour worldwide, his involvement in the music industry in recent years has been more behind-the-scenes. In 2004 he helped put out a two part album entitled The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered, which features a vast line-up of artists from Tom Waits, to Bright Eyes, to The Flaming Lips, to Beck, just to name a few. One disc features covers of Johnston's songs performed by these artists, while the other disc features his own renditions. Johnston suffers from bipolar disorder, but has managed to put out some really substantial tracks despite those difficulties.

Daniel's a really interesting character; in a 2002 interview with Pitchfork, he talked about his fascination for not only music, but old comic books, even Salvador Dali paintings.

"Now I'm really into Salvador Dali. I mean, I always was, but recently I got a bunch of Salvador Dali books and I bought some postcards and started hanging them on my walls. And like I'm listenin' to The Beatles, smokin', you know, and I'll be looking at these little postcard Salvador Dali paintings on my wall just freakin' out! They just look like they're movin'! When I'm high on... and I'm looking at the wall, it just freaked me out! I mean, those paintings are so loud."

It's nothing short of interesting to hear Johnston rant on about getting stoned, listening to The Beatles while Salvador Dali paintings come to life through the walls, like he's Hunter S. Thompson, and then listen to his mellowing anthem of undying love, True Love Will Find You In The End.

Take a listen.

breathing in november

2010-11-09T02:07:00.003-05:00

i like when you stay

and i get to share

the thick not too hot not too cold

where did the humidity go?

who cares?

crunchy leaf city street

new york air

with you

i like writing lines for you

specially selected soaking with passion

dripping dropping words

that look simple on paper

but read like a map to Atlantis in my head

i like how you leave me tongue-tied bleary-eyed

but still up for the ride

hoping we'll get off at the same stop

and your hand will reach for mine

[photograph property of Moriza]

On The Road (Part Two)

2010-11-09T01:25:00.003-05:00

The following excerpt is from Jack Kerouac's On The Road, (p. 209-210)

We were telling these things and both sweating. We had completely forgotten the people up front who had begun to wonder what was going on in the back seat. At one point the driver said, "For God's sakes, you're rocking the boat back there." Actually we were; the car was swaying as Dean and I both swayed to the rhythm and the IT of our final excited joy in talking and living to the blank tranced end of all innumerable riotous angelic particulars that had been lurking in our souls all our lives.

"Oh, man! Oh, man! Oh, man!" moaned Dean. "And it's not even the beginning of it - and now here we are at last going east together, we've never gone east together, Sal, think of it, we'll dig Denver together and see what everybody's doing although that matters little to us, the point being that we know what IT is and we know TIME and we know that everything is really FINE." Then he whispered, clutching my sleeve, sweating, "Now you just dig them in front. They have worries, they're counting the miles, they're thinking about where to sleep tonight, how much money for gas, the weather, how they'll get there - and all the time they'll get there anyway, you see. But they need to worry and betray time with urgencies false and otherwise, purely anxious and whiny, their souls really won't be at peace unless they can latch on to an established and proven worry and having once found it they assume facial expressions to fit and go with it, which is, you see, unhappiness, and all the time it all flies by them and they know it and that too worries them no end."

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Photographed above, on the left is Neal Cassady, (the real-life Dean Moriarty,) and on the left is Jack Kerouac (a.k.a. Sal Paradise)

'On The Road' (Part One)

2010-10-27T04:01:00.005-04:00

I was sitting on the subway today reading Kerouac’s 'On The Road'; now, anybody that’s read it will tell you that it’s rather brilliant and vivid and throw in some sort of whimsical remark like, “it’s poignant yet raw.” It’s one of those books that when asked if they’ve read it, more than half of the people that haven’t read a line of it will say something like “oh yes, it was a while ago though,” in hopes that you won’t ask them anything about the book, or God forbid, ask them what their favorite part was.

So I’m sitting on the E train reading this book that I can hardly allow myself to put down, and I couldn’t help but think to myself, “wow, that Sal just has so much life in him.” Now for those of you that are not familiar with the book (and it’s alright if you aren’t, but after you read this, I expect you to fit picking up a copy into your schedule this week,) Sal is the main character. I found it interesting the first time that our narrator is referred to by name, which doesn’t happen until a handful of chapters into the book, but I found it interesting that his name was Sal, and not Jack. Mentally I just replace all the Sal’s on the page with Jack’s, and then it feels more like Jack Kerouac’s account of his adventures on the road, as he travels slowly but surely to Denver, Colorado.

I’m not very far into the book yet, but I already have this deep appreciation for, and connection to, this character Sal. He is an instantly likeable guy, sort of wandering through the country to ultimately meet his buddies from New York (his home) in Denver. That’s not important right now though; what’s important is the life and curiosity that this one character has in everything he does. I found myself thinking about Jack, and how most of what he wrote in this book is probably what really happened to him; most of the people he describes were probably real people. Names and certain details may have been changed in some cases, but for the most part left alone.

Jack Kerouac unfortunately died at the age of 47 due to cirrhosis of the liver; he essentially drank himself to death. If you flip to the back of the book, there’s a picture of young Jack, and a brief bio on the inside flap of the jacket cover. I thought, alright so he’s dead now, but his writing, his persona, his experiences and memories… those are still so incredibly alive. I feel more alive just reading them. I forgot until that point, that Kerouac was no longer alive; mostly because the book reads as if Jack is telling you this big long series of stories that all intertwine (and admittedly sometimes get confusing,) but always come back to the big picture. Jack referred to his style of writing as "spontaneous prose," which I think is a pretty accurate way to describe it. I'd say that it's an off-shoot of "stream of consciousness" writing. And I came to the conclusion that writers live on regardless of the date on their death certificate; maybe forever. They are alive now after their body has expired, because of the life they put into the words that they carefully placed on the pages of their books. That will live on forever.
This is my first post about On The Road, and I intend to write at least a few more, as I continue my reading, along with including some lines and quotes that I find particularly poetic and meaningful to share with you. And once again, I highly encourage you to pick up a copy of 'On The Road' if you have yet to read it.

Make Something Beautiful

2010-09-25T16:53:00.005-04:00

Today's just short and sweet. I hope you're enjoying the beautiful day if you're on the East coast. And if you're somewhere the weather isn't making you smile, I hope something else is.

Click here if you're looking for something creative to do with a little bit of your free time.

Here's your chance to create something in the style of the artist Jackson Pollock.

Maybe you'll make something beautiful.

Once you get to the page, all you have to do is move your cursor around and you'll understand how it works. Click once each time you want to change the ink color.

Enjoy your day.

"Don't Ask, Don't Tell"? What the hell?

2010-09-20T17:32:00.004-04:00

I know it's been quite a while since I've updated, and I intend to start keeping up with my blog more regularly. I wanted to take the time today though to make people aware of the Senate vote happening tomorrow over the repeal of the 'Don't Ask Don't Tell' policy. Please take the time to watch the video below, and understand the importance of the decision that tomorrow's vote holds. The sexual orientation of an individual should have nothing to do with Americans' right to serve their country. In the year 2010 you'd think that we'd be beyond this point of naivety and bigotry. Some people may refute this video, because of the speaker being an entertainment star as opposed to a politician or known specialist on governmental policy, but that is not the point here. The point is that Lady GaGa is a huge icon in pop culture, and she is using her fame and position in the spotlight to bring attention to a matter that she feels strongly about. I feel just as strongly about this, and hope that the United States Senators make the responsible and ethical decision to repeal this archaic and ignorant policy. Gay, lesbian, straight, bi-sexual, transgender.. your sexual orientation, who you love, these things have no impact on your ability to serve your country. I do not personally agree with the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. I oppose the war, I oppose the fact that after the events of September 11th, 2001, the Bush administration used the fear and frustrations of American citizens as a scapegoat to rush into a war being fought under false pretenses. I have close friends that have bravely served our country in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and although I oppose the war, I support them and applaud their bravery. I think the military is a necessary asset to our country. My grandfathers fought in the Army and Navy. I have reasons to be proud of my country, but it's issues like 'Don't Ask Don't Tell' and 'Proposition 8' that make me ashamed and embarrassed that the United States of America, the country that is supposed to stand for "liberty and justice for all," is not even respecting the men and women that fight for our safety and freedom.

Katrina Now and Then

2009-05-08T14:29:00.006-04:00

On August 29, 2005 Hurricane Katrina hit the city of New Orleans and began to carve its devastating path of destruction. Within the next two days, eighty percent of New Orleans was flooded; some areas were under as much as fifteen feet of water. Although the majority of the hurricane itself missed the city, the levees surrounding the city started to breach due to the immense amount of water coming toward the city from all the wind and flooding. According to a 2007 study conducted by the American Society of Civil Engineers, the breaches in the levees were the most prominent cause of the flooding that occurred in the city of New Orleans1.
With the devastation and the evacuation of roughly ninety percent of the residents of southeast Louisiana, the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina received the nation’s attention. Due to the severe weather and destruction, countless homes were damaged or destroyed. Many victims that did not escape the disaster in time were forced to seek refuge in their attics, or in some cases, on the roof of their flooded homes. Some were lucky enough to get into the Superdome, which was used as the main location for victims to take refuge if they hadn’t left the city in time.
Many of the local residents whose homes were destroyed by the hurricane lost everything. New Orleans’ Ninth Ward was drastically impacted by the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The repair efforts for the destroyed homes are still slow and unsteady. Many residents are still waiting for insurance money and/or government aid that has yet to come. Without this money, the residents can’t make the necessary repairs to return to living in their old homes. A surprising number of people are still forced to live in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) trailers or other areas and sometimes-harsh living environments.
One of the key factors that affected the severity of the damage was location. Depending on the location of the homes, some areas were wiped out, while others were only slightly damaged. North of Claiborne Avenue, which is part of the lower Ninth Ward, the current average number of residents that are fortunate enough to have a repaired home to come back to is about one person per block2. With such a lack of normalcy and without having a place to call home again, the money-tight people of New Orleans have few options.
Another major issue is the number of schools and businesses that were destroyed by the hurricane. Many businesses and jobs were lost, and children were left without a place to learn. The amount of time and money that it takes to rebuild and repair all of the damage that was done makes it very hard to move forward, and the residents are stuck in these unfortunate circumstances. Without the money coming in from the insurance companies and the government, the local people are being suppressed from any kind of economic or societal growth.
The cause of Hurricane Katrina is not the fault of the New Orleans residents, and they deserve the money that they are entitled to so that they can pick up where they left off and start their lives again. Another group that has been under much scrutiny regarding the true devastation of this tragedy is the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, who established the very levees that burst, causing the flooding of New Orleans in the first place. Numerous coastal engineers and scientists that warned of the lack of protection the levees were providing before the events of Hurricane Katrina have spoken out against the repair jobs that the Army Corps did3. The argument is that the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is using the same materials and systems that were used pre-Katrina.
Reports were conducted after Katrina to try and identify the exact issues the Army Corps may have been responsible for. It was concluded that many of the areas of the floodwalls were built on soggy soil and were ultimately left as flimsy barriers3. Between bad engineering and poorly conducted analyses, the floodwalls were sure to fail. Once the hurricane itself had died off, the media lost interest in the story, and ultimately the American people moved on to the next story; however, the destruction was still very real.
On September 12, 2005 Mike Brown the director of FEMA, resigned. He had come under much scrutiny by the critics in the media over the way he handled a lot of the situations regarding the Katrina aftermath. In a news release, Brown said, “As I told the president, it is important that I leave now to avoid further distraction from the ongoing mission of FEMA.4” Another big issue holding back the progress of New Orleans is the lack of trust between the people and organizations.
As Michael Grunwald of CNN states in his Katrina anniversary article, “The Threatening Storm,” “But in the long run, recovery plans won’t much if investors, insurers and homesick evacuees can’t trust the Corps to prevent the city from drowning again.” I think that if the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers did a poor job protecting the city, leading to be a big cause of the gravity of Katrina, and they haven’t taken any significant efforts to revise their practices, then another organization needs to step in and take over.
Independent research needs to be conducted to ensure that every possible safety measure is put into place to avoid ever having a disaster like this happen again. According to hurricane experts like Ivor van Heerden, of the University of Louisiana, Katrina was not the worst possible scenario, and natural disasters like this could happen again. We need to be prepared for another hurricane, and we need to have the confidence that the residents will be safe and structures will hold. Hurricane Katrina needs to be taken as a warning and as a learning experience so that the safety and well being of the people of New Orleans isn’t threatened like this again.

Slumdog Millionaire

2009-03-09T12:34:00.005-04:00

The newly Oscar Winning movie, "Slumdog Millionaire" has raked in well over $125 million in the United States alone, since its November 12th release. I saw the movie personally and thought that it was very well done, in terms of acting, cinematography, and writing. The film follows the story of Jamal Malik, played by first-time silver screen actor Dev Patel. Jamal is a contestant on the Indian version of "Who Wants to be a Millionaire?" and essentially the film is a visual representation of the significant events in his life thus far. Each question that he is asked sparks a different memory of his childhood and young adult life.

Jamal, an 18 year old orphan from Mumbai, is playing to win a possible 20 million rupees, as the entire nation spectates from their televisions. The basic premise of the movie is that the Mumbai police are under the impression Jamal has cheated and they are interrogating him to find out the truth. As they watch a video tape of the show, he tells the story of each of his life experiences behind the questions he answered correctly one by one. The film depicts vivid retellings of Jamal's childhood, from witnessing his own mother's murder, to harrowing recollections of mistreatment by local gangs, to finding true love.

There are many children that can be seen in the film, which was actually filmed in India (Agra, Uttar Pradesh and Mumbai, Maharashtra.) According to some reports, these kids have been compensated by some sort of a trust fund, and a promise of a regular education, with another payment after the completion of school at the age of 18. The children were flown out to the United States for the Oscars ceremony and a complimentary trip to Disneyland, but were then flown back to home to India. It is unfortunate though, that after helping to tell the story of such poverty and poor quality of life, these children are expected to get a little taste of "The American Dream" and then fly back home to the heart breaking conditions depicted in the film.

This is not the case for all of these children however; Azharuddin Mohammed (age 10), and Rubiana Ali (age 9) who appeared in the movie have each been given an apartment to live in with their families, courtesy of the state housing association. Some may think that these kids' lives will be totally different now, but this is really not the case; Rubiana's mother had left for five years, and suddenly returned one day after the movie to try to forcefully take Rubiana from her father. Azharuddin's mother has to live with only one eye, and his father has tuberculosis.

This is not to say that Fox Searchlight or any other company is to blame for these living conditions, but it raises a lot of ethical questions.

Why is it that we don't think twice to make a movie with a production budget of $15 million that reveals the true lives and hardships of human beings, young and old, who live in extreme poverty and just get by one meal at a time, but then continue to accept it? "If you're not part of the solution then you're part of the problem." This film is still earning more money every day, and as of yesterday its total domestic gross was $125,441,000. That kind of money could change so many lives of the people of the country of India, and even our own, but the majority of it is going to major corporations and businesses that already have more money than they need.

Hipsters: The American Postmodern Culture

2009-03-02T16:48:00.004-05:00

The dictionary defines a hipster as, “someone who rejects the established culture and advocates extreme liberalism in politics and lifestyle.” Hipsters are often compared to the hippies during the 1960’s. Similar to the Haight Ashbury generation, hipsters tend to reject mainstream culture and create their own subculture. The focuses of the culture relate to art, music, literature, film, and nonconformist principles. It is generally thought to be a liberal society, more often than not, rejecting Republican politics, especially that of Conservatives.
The most prominent place to find hipsters would be New York City; more commonly Manhattan and Brooklyn; particularly Williamsburg, Wicker Park in Chicago, and the Mission District in San Francisco. In places like the West Village you can often find hipsters in cafés, bars, record stores, art galleries, and thrift stores. Thrift stores are where they get the majority of their clothing, for a few reasons. The culture generally rejects the idea of big corporations and would rather not be part of the zombie-like social norm of supporting and accepting big businesses. They also tend to take extreme pride and effort into finding unique and individual fashions that no one else is wearing.
Hipsters frequent places such as The Salvation Army and Goodwill, Urban Outfitters and American Apparel. The hipster fashion has become more and more recognized lately and stores have been gearing more towards those needs. If you go to either of the Beacon’s Closet locations in Brooklyn you’ll find almost only second-hand clothes that would pass the hipster test. Scarves have little to do with keeping you warm, and hairstyles are often messy, unique, and androgynous.
Each hipster tries to be individual and innovative with his or her wardrobe, but there are a few essentials. Most at least own a pair of dark rimmed glasses, or horn-rimmed sunglasses and layers up with different articles of clothing that wouldn’t be the most typical get-up on a West Side yuppie. A hipster would define a “yuppie” as a “young urban/upcoming professional, who enjoys to flaunt their money and designer clothing, and like to think that they gentrify affordable areas of the city.” Once they take over those areas, that part of the city often becomes unaffordable for most of the people that are not actually yuppies.
Hipsters like to live more simply, not spending exorbitant amounts of money on much of anything. The most the typical hipster would pay would be their monthly rent, or while buying a new acoustic guitar, or incredibly vintage leather jacket. They are often misconceived as unintelligent or undereducated, but often hold a liberal arts degree and have strong analytical capabilities and senses.
It is common for a hipster to base attractions on intellectual levels and personal interests. The more affluent societal focus is on physical appearance; many hipsters reject these ideals as oppressive and misogynistic. A lot of mainstream people and companies reject hipster fashion, but unwittingly copy their trends. When you walk into an Abercrombie & Fitch or American Eagle today you will find more jeans with rips and holes than anything else. Hipsters who bought their jeans more-than-gently used in thrift stores originated this style.
Although hipsters have become for prevalent and culturally rich in postmodern society, they are often alienated and thought of as some sort of anti-American societal plague. This view really couldn’t be farther from the truth, and is often fueled by conformist “average” members of society who are often culturally deprived and view intelligence and eclecticism as wrong and a threat to masculinity.
Even putting aside the fashion, music, and literature, the common hipster ideals could really benefit society if practiced regularly. The idea of acceptance of all groups of people in terms of race, ethnicity, gender, sexuality, background, socioeconomic status, and a focus on the importance of cultural awareness and diverse knowledge of the world around should be incredibly important to everyone. There is no reason why these values should only be practiced or recognized by a frizzy-haired, American Apparel wearing, organic tea-drinking hipster.
The popular literature among the hipster culture can often include a sundry array of titles, but there is a definite emphasis on the Beat Generation’s Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, and William S. Burroughs. Books, theatre, and poetry are all vitally important to the hipster culture. Music can really vary, but there is a strong prominence of unreleased records, underground mixtapes, and frequently attending live performances in smaller intimate venues.
The more common medium for acquiring music is either purchasing every album you can possibly get in vinyl or getting tracks through music blogs and mix CD’s passed around through groups of friends. Hipsters typically take pride in owning unreleased and rare tracks from their favorite artists, as well as obtaining old songs from their previous bands which most had back in high school or college. There is a common tendency for hipsters to prefer the music of artists that are not very mainstream. There is a common stereotype that hipsters “know bands that don’t exist yet.”
Another common interest among the culture is independent film. Obviously you can find hipsters going to the local AMC theatre to see Slum Dog Millionaire, but the more common hipster movie experience would be finding a smaller theatre that has the maximum of a handful of screens and shows independent and foreign films. These films often contain more substance than the typical high budget silver screen films that depict the action hero or awkward high school underachiever. These films often relate to people on a more personal and human level and pertain to cultural and ethical issues.
The hipster culture is looked at in many lights throughout American society. Some people have never even heard the terminology, and others wish that they hadn’t, but overall it is a vast and diverse society with rich cultural and innovative offerings in music, literature, art, and politics. They hold to a strong set of ideals that many Americans could really benefit from in comparison to certain aspects of the current “social norm.”

The above photograph is from Brooklyn Vegan. Visit Brooklyn Vegan at www.brooklynvegan.com

Update on Gov. David Paterson

2009-02-19T11:02:00.005-05:00

Last month, I gave you my side on New York Governor Paterson's politics, so I thought it would be appropriate to give you an update. After his office handled the appointment of Hillary Clinton's Senate seat so poorly, Paterson's approval ratings have continued to plunder. Attorney General Andrew Cuomo is more or less convinced to take another stab for the Governor seat partially because of all the mess Paterson is now in. In a recent Quinnipiac poll, Cuomo beat Paterson 55% to 23% in a primary match-up. In comparison to GOP opponent Rudy Guiliani, there was a dead tie of 43%, but Cuomo still won over Guiliani 51% to 37%.

At a press conference on Tuesday, when asked about plans for the future, Paterson contended that he still plans to run again in 2010 and blamed the low ratings on bad publicity in the media. Yes, Dave, I'm sure it has nothing to do with you and your administration's pitiful attempts to handle the budget deficit, exorbitant number of job cuts, and hypocritical misspending of government funds on Turkish rugs.

After the appointment of Kirsten Gillibrand to Hillary Clinton's Senate seat, more and more information has leaked, adding increasing suspicion to the ethics of not only the appointment but the way in which Paterson acted to avoid backlash. This is to say that there was a last minute push by Chuck Schumer, which has been viewed as another Paterson attempt to spread the blame. So far her achievements include alienating the majority of her New York colleagues on issues such as amnesty for illegal immigrants, gun-control, and presenting a balanced-budget amendment that, if left unchecked, could have bankrupted the state, according to a recent article in New York Magazine.

Another enemy that Paterson and Gillibrand now share is Speaker of the House, Nancy Pelosi. This is personal for her, too, because she fought to give Paterson a chance to speak at the Democratic National Convention in Boston back in 2004. Another issue raised is whether or not there will be an attempt to retain Gillibrand's seat in 2010, which we can only imagine will not be a strongly advocated issue. The Obama administration isn't a fan either, based on the humiliation that Paterson and his politics have put Caroline Kennedy through.

At this point it's pretty obvious that Paterson isn't going to have a change of heart and become any more human or willing to point an ear in the direction of the people of the state of New York, but maybe all of this outside pressure will make him at least change his course, even if only to preserve his image. We'll just have to wait and see what happens.

On a Personal Note...

2009-02-14T00:02:00.003-05:00

The following is a message that I saved on my phone to later be added to the blog and am uploading now:

I'm sitting on a train heading back to New York and I could probably rip apart a phonebook right now. My train was delayed over 2 1/2 hours and I spoke with the person at the ticket counter and she started making analogies about airports and I responded "this is not an airport, you do not work for an airline, I am not trying to take a flight, I am trying to take train, which I already paid for and expected to be here when I was told it would be, so let's talk about that." Her ever popular answer was "talk to my supervisor." When I spoke to this supervisor I asked if I could get a new ticket on a different train and she said "sure, if you pay for it." So I politely explained that I'm trying to get home and I don't have the additional $60 that I would have to pay, and even if I did I wouldn't pay a cent extra strictly on principal.

She said I could call the Amtrak phone number, so I did, and a very nice woman said that she felt for my situation but could not upgrade my ticket but I could try to talk to customer service. She transferred me and wished me a good day, and I proceeded to listen to 10 minutes of Beethoven. Now if I were sitting on my train on my way home looking out the window and admiring the trees and lakes and bridges I would love to have Beethoven as the temporary soundtrack to my life, but The only view in sight was of a big board of numbers and destinations and the capital letters next to my incredibly late train reading DELAYED.

As I sat down and put my head in my hands after hanging up on Beethoven, I looked up and Dustin Hoffman was standing in front of me. In times of great stress and upsetment the human mind can often create eccentric illusions, but this was not one of those times. Dustin Hoffman really was standing right next to me, and I didn't even know what to say, so I just looked at him as he was looking back at me and smiled. For those of my readers that may not know me personally, I am an actor, and so this experience went beyond just seeing a famous person, it made me feel like there was a reason for my train being in the end a total of 3 hours late, and

Dustin Hoffman gave me some strange bit of reassurance. Now I'm sitting on the train somewhere in Rhode Island and watching beautiful landscapes go by my window while listening to music to calm me down from the first half of my day, and no, it's not Beethoven.

Invisible in America

2009-02-12T23:07:00.009-05:00

There is a pressing issue that everyone is aware of, but most choose to completely ignore or deny, and that is poverty in America. In his 2005 book, "The Working Poor," David Shipler states that "in American atmosphere, poverty has always carried a whiff of sinfulness." This statement unfortunately bears a lot of truth. As Americans, both from within our own country as well as from outside foreign viewpoints, we are expected to fit a certain mold.

We are said to be this land of opportunity where the streets are paved with gold, but even the most diehard "patriots" have to realize by now (although some will never admit it) that there is a whole lot of poverty and misfortune in our sweet land of liberty. However, instead of addressing these issues head-on and dealing with them, we put people into categories, creating a class system within society. The average are thought to be the middle class; not poor like the forgotten blue collar workers, but not rich like the fantasy lives we see on TMZ. The poor are often regarded as lazy and as living tarnish on the American name.

When we see a homeless person on the street, we call them a bum or laugh, or give them condescending dehumanizing looks. We deny them the dignity that we give a man in a suit and tie holding a $6 cup of coffee. Someone doesn't have a 9-5 desk job so they must be a drug addict, or unworthy of living a comfortable life. In reality there are so many good people that just don't have the opportunities that others are blessed with. The roles just as easily could have been reversed, which is far too often forgotten.

In reality, we don't know these people's stories, because we don't know them. There are many men that sit behind a desk all day and have a Blackberry surgically attached to their face, and quite a few of them live cold, closed-off, meaningless lives. The people that they walk by every day whether on the busy streets of Manhattan, or the windy avenues of Chicago are the forgotten souls that are not even given as much as a nod. This is not to say that there are not thousands, maybe millions of people that are living within communities like yours and mine that are struggling to make ends meet but still have the great privilege of owning their own home. These are the people that clean hotel rooms all day long, but can not afford to spend a night sleeping in it. These are the people that wash cars for 8 hours a day and can not afford to drive their own. These are even the people that go off to war and fight in the name of our country and come back to live on the streets. I'm not suggesting that there is an easy fix to these problems, but even the smallest actions can speak volumes. Next time someone asks for even 25 cents, just give it to them. Maybe you paid for part of their dinner that they wouldn't have been able to have otherwise.

Whenever I'm in New York City, I often am approached by those who are less fortune, many of whom seem to most likely be homeless, and they ask for anything that I can spare, and if they are kind and seem like they could really use the money, and I don't think they're just trying to score their next hit, I give them some money. Almost every time that I do so, I get an instant response of "God bless you" or "you're a good person" or "you're really helping me out." Hearing those words are instant gratification and it feels really good to help other people. It's also very easy to do. There are so many other ways to help though. You don't have to give money, you can buy something from a food stand for them if you're afraid of where the money would end up going. Most people that have resulted to begging for money are doing it because they really need it. Be the change we want to see in the world.

The above picture is graffiti art from the urban artist Banksy, you can check out more of his artwork here.

Chapel of Sacred Mirrors

2009-02-08T18:23:00.015-05:00

Alex Grey is an American artist whose paintings are mostly spiritual, having to do with the human body, the soul, and the universe. While attending the Boston Museum School he met his now-wife Allyson Rymland Grey and experimented with LSD which, according to his biography on his website, "induced mystical experiences that transformed his agnostic existentialism to a radical transcendentalism." They became much more aware of their inner selves and beliefs through their entheogenic (derived from Greek, literally meaning becoming divine within) endeavors. At Harvard he began to study the human body in different respects varying from cadaver dissections to exploring various methods of healing energies.

Alex had training in drawing anatomy and this was one of the building blocks that led to his creation of the 'Sacred Mirrors.'

The 'Sacred Mirrors' is Alex Grey's 21 painting series that explores the human body and spirit through all walks of life, both before during and after. The goal of the paintings is to take the viewer of them through a visual tour of their inner self, mind, body, and soul.

"In a cosmos of billions of galaxies, in a galaxy of billions of stars, there's a planet with billions of people - the only one we know of - and every breath we breathe is a miracle. Our hearts pump, we see, we feel, we taste, we touch the world. And sometimes we forget the pure wonder of our brief journey on Earth. My life is committed to making artwork that wakes people up to the miracle of life, the value of being human, and the transformative power of love. There are moments when we see behind the opaque curtain of life, when the infinite One shines through the skin of the Beloved and we recognize the game we are in, the journey we are on, the powerful beings that we are and the truth that is worth living for." - Alex Grey

This man is absolutely an incredible inspiration. Now I can assume that some people may thing that he is a hippie, or a religious or spiritual radical, but the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors is open to all people, of all ages, race, and religion. As they state, "the mission of COSM is to provide an enduring sanctuary of visionary art to inspire every pilgrim's creative path and affirm the values of love and integral wisdom." I decided to dedicate today's post to this topic because I was reminded of it when I wrote the last entry about spirituality, I was reminded of the awe-inspiring artwork of this visionary artist. Essentially, Alex Grey has done and is currently doing all of this amazing things to help open people's minds and not to make them believe one particular set of beliefs, but to better understand whatever it is that they personally believe in. It's like helping someone see within themselves when their vision has been impaired, or they just haven't seen anything inspiring.

The idea that there is a place where anyone can go, and they can experience art and spirituality and open their eyes, and their minds to their inner beliefs and the beauty of all of the wonders of the universe and are encouraged to do so is unbelievable. The mix between transcendental art and all around good natured people that are part of this movement is such a beautiful thing to take into consideration, if everyone were a part of something like this, we probably wouldn't need to worry about any more wars. Everyone has their own way of looking at themselves, the world, life, death, the afterlife, but this artwork speaks volumes to anyone that views it and each person is open to their own interpretation. Below are just a few samples of Alex Grey's artwork.

This painting, entitled "Artist's Hand" is very symbolic in my mind to the art of Alex Grey, how his art opens people's eyes, with the eye in place of the bristles of the brush, you can see the different people and religious/cultural figures in the top left corner, which represents his focus on a hyperawareness to those kinds of important pillars. Towards the bottom there are evil looking creatures which seem to be being tormented, possibly from the lightness coming from the art itself.

This painting, "One" makes me think of love. The love between two human beings making this mental and spiritual connection, represented by the two heads conforming together. To me the eyes throughout the painting represent both the universe and the mind's eye, and they are flowing back and forth between the two people that are experiencing this unbreaking connection.

This painting is called "Oversoul." It reminds me of the experiences that I've had that I referred to in the previous entry of spiritual and mental occurrences and is like a human being catching a glimpse into their soul, their higher powers and levels of being.

This painting, entitled "Wonder" can apply to many people in many different places in their life, whether it be mental, spiritual, geographic, or anything at all. I think of when I was a child looking up at the stars and wondering if my wishes would really come true if I found a twinkling one, looking up at the sky and trying to imagine what it would be like to fly up there and just explore. The forehead of the child portrayed in the painting is illuminated and makes me think of the third eye, of which is significant in many different forms of spirituality, culture, and religion, but varies depending on each sect. Sometimes referred to as the "chakra," the third eye is thought to be the part of us that connects to inner realms and higher levels of consciousness. It is often connected with instances of clairvoyance, visions, precognitions, and out-of-body experiences. Everyone has it, but not everyone can harness and actually use these abilities. Those that can are often referred to as "seers." In the Hindu religion, when women wear "the dot on their forehead," it's actually called a "tilak," and it represents the third eye. The intricate details that are floating in the sky remind me of a flow of knowledge and information, similar to the belief that all thought processes operate on an electrical impulse frequency and travel through the open space.

Apology

2009-02-07T01:09:00.014-05:00

Tonight I want to do something a little different and give you a little bit of everything. I'd like to start with a continuation of the philosophy to keep things flowing. Last night I talked to you about the "Allegory of the Cave," but for right now I'd like to focus more on Socrates as the human being, not just the man whose words have been strewn across countless pages across the world. This is called "Apology."

Meletus, Socrates' chief accuser interrogates Socrates in front of the Athenian jury (in this time period, the jury was the men of the Senate.) He is accusing Socrates of corrupting the youth. This retelling is referred to as "the apology," but it's much more of an attack followed by a responsive defense than anything else. Socrates describes to the men of the jury his experience of visiting the oracle at Delphi, who said that "there is no man wiser" than Socrates. He is perplexed by this notion, and decides to look at it more as a riddle than a statement. Socrates figures that as long as he finds another man whom he believes to be wiser than he, it will contradict the oracle's statement and make a bold statement against such prophecies and stipulations. There is another man that has the reputation of being very wise, so Socrates decides to use him as a test. This man is a well-known politician, and many think of him as a very wise man, but they Socrates comes to realize after actually sitting down and talking to this man, that he is not a wise man at all, and he thinks of himself as even wiser than the common people do. Socrates realizes that he truly is much wiser than this man. Socrates calls this man out on his lack of wisdom, and is met with great hatred.

He decides to take it as a lesson and says to himself, "well although I do not suppose either of us knows anything really beautiful and good, I am better off than he is - for he knows nothing and thinks that he knows. I neither know nor think that I know. In this latter, then, I seem to have an advantage over him. In my opinion, he is saying that he is much more realistic and aware of the notion that although he may have some very thought-provoking stances and ways of interpreting certain details of life, there are many things that he does not and will never know. He can appreciate the fact that some things are just infinite questions that go through most people's minds but can not simply be answered. "why am I here?" "how did I get here?" "what happens after all of this?"

These questions have been going through my head for the past several months, and sometimes I catch glimpses of the answers, but they're always subtle, faint, uncertain, but nonetheless powerful and moving. We search for our place in life, the meaning of life, the reason why we were put here, on this planet, in this place, in this time period, being who we are, and these questions are enough to make you crazy. And they do make me crazy. But sometimes I find comfort in the little moments of fulfillment. Is the sky there so that the birds can fly? Are the birds there so that the sky can have something to fill it? Or is their interaction a coincidence? This may be a terrible example, but we just don't know.

Socrates is accused of spreading the views and beliefs of atheism. Meletus charges that Socrates is completely atheist and has no spiritual, divine, or holy beliefs. Socrates responds that if he believes in holy and divine things, then he is not a complete atheist just because he's not so sure if he believes in a divine being or multiple beings. He goes on to pose a few questions before Meletus and the rest of the jury, "did any man, Meletus, ever believe in the existence of human things and not human beings?... I wish, men of Athens, that he would answer and not be always trying to create an interruption. Did ever any man believe in horsemanship and not horses? Or in flute playing and not flute players? No, my friend. I will answer for you and to the court, as you refuse to answer for yourself. There is no man who ever did. But now, please answer the next question. Can a man believe in spiritual and divine activities and not in divine beings?"

This question is one that many people can go their entire lives and not be able to fully answer. We all have our own set of beliefs, regardless of religion or background, but everyone experiences things at one time or another that they just can not explain. Those are the things that make me hopeful that there is a greater purpose to this life, there is something more than right here, right now, you and I, me and you. And if not, then let's make it count right now. But if there is, let's live our lives in every way we can to try to attain a higher standard and meaningful existence, a bigger meaning, accomplishing positive triumphs. A closed mind is like a closed book, and the eye of the master will do more work than both his hands. Open your mind, your eyes, your mind's eye to the bigger meaning in the little things in life, the minute by minute timeline of your existence and you will find a deeper purpose.

This is not a religious blog crusade, the words I've just put in front of you can apply to anyone in any creed, region, socioeconomic status, or place in their life. Live in the moment, but be aware of it's affect on the future, and the way that the past is shaping your actions, your decisions, your justifications. In the end we have tools put in front of us, whether they are physical objects, other human beings, or opportunities, and we have to act. If a knife is put in your hand you can oppress the people around you, or you can break the bound free. Life hands us countless opportunities, both big and small each day, we just have to look for them, and decide what to do with them.

Allegory of the Cave

2009-02-05T21:58:00.007-05:00

First off I'd like to thank the people that have become followers of my blog, and keeping up with the posts, and I apologize that I haven't updated in a little while. With the new semester starting I've had free-time at weird points in the day. This time I'm going to take a break from talking about politics and focus on philosophy; particularly the writings of Socrates and Plato.

The first work that I'd like to focus on is Plato's "Allegory of the Cave," which is actually a metaphor all in itself. Try to picture a dark cave, where men are chained up and can not move at all. These men are surrounded by fire both in front of and behind them, and beyond the fire at their backs is a path where free men can walk. On the other side of the fire in front of them are their shadows. The chains symbolize the fact that these men are held back by their practices of unethical and devious actions and thoughts. These thoughts may be malicious or sensual desires that they have trouble resisting. Basically the message that he's trying to get across here is the fact that when people give into temptation and stray from good, they are chained to their dark beliefs in a cave of darkness, and until they get out of that cave they will not be able to see the light, both literally and metaphorically.

Once the chained individuals are finally able to overcome this darkness and break through to the light, they are temporarily blinded by it, because they are so used to the darkness, and the light is such a different viewpoint for them. Picture yourself say, being a drug addict, and then you finally overcome that addiction and you're seeing the world from a sober view and mindset all in one day. That would be a huge change for you and that essentially is what these men in the cave are going through.

Too often in life we find ourselves trapped in a deep dark part of ourselves that we may not even understand or know where it's coming from; we just know that it's there. It's like a slump that we know we have a strong desire to get out of, but we just don't know the way out. At least not right away. We are those people chained in the cave. We are chained to our material possessions, our addictions, our habits, our stray thoughts, our impure thoughts. When we finally break free of those chains that are holding us back, we see the light, but in the beginning it is very bright, often blinding, and we get scared. What I'm proposing to you is that you build up all the courage that you can, within yourself, and you walk into that light and open your eyes and you will see that the difficult journey was worth the destination all along.

Turning A Blind Eye On The People

2009-01-28T16:31:00.008-05:00

America has long been held up on this pedestal as the land where the streets are paved with gold, but the mere idea of that is a joke now. Where I live, in the state of New York, Governor David Paterson wants to solve our $15.4 billion budget crisis by instating additional taxes on basically everything that costs money. His solution would call for an increase in taxes on items and services such as downloads on iTunes, movie tickets, taxi fares, beer, soda, massages, cable and satellite TV, gym memberships, even haircuts. He also proposes to remove the tax-exemption on clothing costing less than $110, which for most people is all of their clothing. According to State Conservative Party Chairman, Michael Long, all this would be doing is sending more business to New Jersey, and driving tourists as well as New Yorkers to different areas for shopping due to lower taxes, and while they're there they'll fill up the tank too. There is currently a law that puts a cap on gas tax at 8 cents per gallon, which could go up under the Governor's new plan. Another state resident amenity that is particularly convenient in these tough economic times is the SUNY and CUNY school systems having much more reasonable in-state tuition prices, but under Paterson's plan, SUNY admission would go up $620 per year, with CUNY admission going up an addition $600.

Obviously the entire country is in a very serious economic situation, but this is not the way to go about solving the problem. You will only be lowering tourism and making the people of your own state go to other states to get the things they need, which will ultimately cause a new economic problem for the state as well as hurt the local businesses. The Governor's plans also call for almost $700 million in reductions in school aid, lay-offs of over 500 state employees, the closure of 7 state agencies, and cutting about three and a half billion dollars of health care savings. None of these proposals would be helping the people of the state of New York.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg, however, does not agree with the Governor's tax proposals and stated that these cuts would end up costing the city money, as well as hurt the school systems with larger class sizes and a decreased number of services for students. Those that stand strongly opposed to Paterson's plans to cut education and healthcare aid suggest an increase in income tax on the wealthiest New Yorkers. His response was "This is where we are. We should have thought about this when we were depending on what we thought was inexhaustible collections of taxes from Wall Street, and now those taxes have fallen off a cliff."

Any level-headed person in this economic time and climate can say that we all need to do our share and make some sacrifices. Any level-headed person, but that apparently does not include David Paterson, whose administration laid out $37,741 for new rugs to be put into the Governor's Albany mansion. Ken Brynien, President of the Public Employees Federation (the organization whose employees were asked to forget about raises due to increased budget cuts,) Brynien was told, "we took up the 50-year-old carpet that was in there, it was junk, frankly." by the commissioner of the New York State Office of General Services, John Egan. Maybe new carpets were necessary, but I don't think that two "Turkish patchwork" rugs coming in at a grand total of $21,000 were remotely necessary, especially for our "we need to make some sacrifices" Governor. The rugs were purchased from Stark Carpets, according to state records. Stark Carpets donated $8,000 to former Governor Eliot Spitzer's campaign. David Paterson was Spitzer's running-mate in 2006. His administration claims that there is no correlation, and Stark Carpets had no comment.

Lil' Wayne With A Guitar?

2009-01-26T13:41:00.008-05:00

Rapper Lil' Wayne had planned on releasing his first single, "Prom Queen," off his upcoming 'Rebirth' album (due out April 7th) on Tuesday, but whether by accident, or as a ploy to create buzz and boost sales, the single has already hit the internet and radio. The hype about this single though, is not its early release, but it's sound. Weezy took a giant leap and has gone "rock" on this single, complete with electric guitars and lots of drums. A lot of hardcore fans are very upset with this single and feel that it doesn't represent his true sound and wonder if all of 'The Rebirth' is going to sound like this. Interestingly enough, the often less than humble rapper's lyrics express his undying interest in a particular girl in school, who turns out to be the prom queen. He quickly retorts with a description of "her loss" recognition once "the prom queen is crying, sitting outside my door / you never know how everything could turn out..."

Of course the record wouldn't be Wayne without a lot of auto-tone; it's still there, not just as strong as usual. There have been mixed reactions circling around the web, but mostly they've all been negative. If you sell millions of records both online and in stores, and have billboard hits like "Lollipop," "Got Money," "A Milli," as well as collaborations with artists such as Kanye West, Kevin Rudolph, T-Pain, Juelz Santana, and many others, why would you think you should change your sound? If you haven't heard the new track yet, take a listen.

Change

2009-01-25T23:39:00.004-05:00

This is the first entry of many to come, and the focus of this post will be the inauguration. Although the topic for this entry will mainly be politics, this will not always be the case. This Tuesday was a day that will be forever be embedded in United States history. Not only did the country witness the inauguration of its first African-American president, but January 20th marked the end of an 8-year fascist tyranny by George W. Bush and his administration. The country has experienced many different reactions to this shift in government, and for the most part there has been an optimistic response. Throughout Barack Obama's campaign, we've heard one word more than any other, "change." Change is definitely something that this country has needed, but we need to be realistic about it too. If we're all looking for "change we can believe in," then we need to be that change. Ghandi said "be the change you want to see in the world," and I think that's exactly what we have to do.

I'm very excited about our new president, but I'm trying to be realistic about the situation that we have in front of us. Change would be great, but in order to bring about widespread change, we all need to do our part. One of the main focuses that President Obama has been stressing lately is the need for people to get involved and lend a hand in their community. This is something that I personally am going to do. There is a center for mentally disabled adults right near my school that I volunteered at last semester for a "Community Connections" day at school and I plan on putting in some time there. Last time I was there I learned so much, and met some incredible people with unbelievable stories.

As I mentioned earlier, there have been mixed reactions to our new president. Overall people seem to be happy and hopeful, but as always, you can't please everybody. The right-wings are not happy. Rush Limbaugh, in an interview (video below) with Sean Hannity, admits that he wants Obama to fail. See I can understand that everyone has their own views and I completely respect that and I'm glad that we live in a country that you're allowed to have your own opinion, but if Limbaugh were a "true American" then despite the fact that he didn't vote for Obama, he'd want Obama to succeed and bring this country up from the deep dark slump that it's currently in. After Limbaugh goes off on a rant about how Obama won't succeed in any of his plans, Sean Hannity praises him. Once again we can thank Fox News for this bias right-wing banter.

Hannity mentions the "Obama worship syndrome" and to a certain extent, I do agree with him. I voted for Barack Obama and I very much hope that the words he said and stances he took that won him this elections will be upheld, but I think that the hype surrounding Obama has become unhealthy in some cases. There are infomercials and TV shopping network specials selling everything from Obama plates to underwear. I like the guy, but I don't want to look down at my dinner and see his face; it's just not necessary. He is an excellent public speaker, an intelligent man, a man of values, morals, and promising aspirations, but he is not a God, he is a human being like you and I. I just hope that people remember that.

President Obama has wasted no time and has already made some big decisions, like signing a bill to close the Guantanamo Bay detention facility within a year. His reasoning being to "restore the standards of due process and the core constitutional values that have made this country great even in the midst of war, even in dealing with terrorism." Now granted, we need to know more about the process that will be taken in terms of trials, releases, relocations, etc. but I think this is a step in the right direction. Rep. John Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, called the order to close Guantanamo "a first key step in restoring America's image and credibility in the world." Not much is known about the future of these detainees though, in terms of where they'll be relocated and what their legal status will be.

Another recent announcement from President Obama was the plans for the American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan, which he hopes will give the economy a boost. The plans need to be finalized and discussed with Congress, but they include an outline to expand electric grids, provide stable healthcare for those in danger of losing it, securing ports, renovating schools, and increasing the number of science fellowships. It's refreshing to see that the new president hasn't wasted any time in laying down plans for improving conditions for the country, but we're still in a serious recession and we'll need a lot of legislation and time to get through it.

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