Gossip on the Internet

Great column from Honolulu Star-Bulletin writer Curt Brandao examining the feasibility of cutting down on gossip and b.s. on the Internets.

Will somebody help this man out please?

He wants to play board games. And drink coffee. He'll even shave for you. And your significant other. Help a brother out!

Goethe on blogging

"The greatest evil of our time -- which lets nothing come to fruition -- is, I think, that one moment consumes the next, wastes the day within that same day and so is always living from hand to mouth without achieving anything of substance. Don't we already have news-sheets for every point of the day! A clever man might well be able to slip in one or two more. In this way everything that anyone does, is working at or writing, indeed plans to write, is dragged out into the open. No one is allowed to be happy or miserable except as a pastime for the rest of the world, and so news rushes from house to house, from town to town, from one country to another, and, in the end, from one continent to the next, and all on the principle of speed and velocity."

-- from Wilhelm Meister's Journeyman Years

Leon Dimanche et Les Lionceaux des Cayes

Okay. I admit the last post might have been a bit insincere, homoerotic and over-the-top. I lost a staring contest with (a poster of) Andre Rieu some years ago and have never been the same since. I thought I'd follow that silliness up with a sincere recommendation of one of my favorite musicians, Haitian guitarist and singer Leon Dimanche.

Dimanche and the Les Lionceaux des Cayes group were very popular in the seventies in Haiti and beyond. I first heard a few tracks on a mix given to me by DJ Balagan, and had to search for a while before I could track anything down myself. Fortunately someone has posted audio files of songs from his 1973 album on a Haitian Web site. You can find those here.

There's some more information about Leon Dimanche at his home page and you can buy some of his older albums at Wagmarlove online store.

Rieumors & Rieumance

While reading the KC Star Web site today and playing the customary game of "whack-a-mole" with the pop-up ads, I came across one advertisement that sent spasms of delight down my culture-starved spine. Andre Rieu, world's most beloved violinist, will be appearing at the Sprint Center on Friday, April 18.

Heralded far and wide as the "King of the Waltz," Andre Rieu perpetually tours the world, playing elegantly upon the strings of his 1732 Stradivarius as well as the heartstrings of middle-aged women around the globe. Occasionally mistaken for Mel Gibson's character in the Patriot, Andre Rieu and his Strauss Orchestra have hypnotized and delighted literally countless classical music fans over the years.

Seeing Andre Rieu in concert has been referred to by many fans as a life-changing experience. Who, they ask, upon hearing Rieu's version of "My Heart Will Go On" (from his "Andre Rieu at the Movies" album) could ever hope to be the same? And what person with functioning ears and beating heart would dare deny the majesty of Rieu and Company's "The Blue Danube," performed live at Royal Albert Hall and punctuated by the booming of fireworks?

However, it is not simply the compositions he interprets but the soul-stirring facial expressions he composes mid-performance that elevate Rieu to the deific heights reserved for those such as Mozart, Yanni and Groban. In the same way that the far-reaching aria of an opera singer can shatter the finest crystal, a single meaningful glance from the virtuosic visage of Dutch violinist Rieu can break hearts.

There are many rumors circulating about the man -- nay, the enigma -- that is Andre Rieu. There are claims of an invalid at a Medjugorjean monastery being drawn out of bed and into a spontaneous waltz upon hearing the artful swells of Rieu's "Swinging Bells of Limburg" on the order's antique phonograph. There has been excitement for years in both the hip-hop and classical communities that if a long-anticipated collaboration between Andre Rieu and Outkast's Andre Benjamin takes place, the two genres will be united to usher in a golden-age of popular world music.

Yes, there is much magic and mystery surrounding Andre Rieu. And as ebullient as this write-up of mine may be, one must (after all) decide for oneself. On April 18, for the starting price of $50, this chance can be yours.

Backyard Bouncin'

My brothers and I enjoyed some natural highs on Easter Sunday


Jenny was on hand to photo-document


I got to show off my new striped socks


But I ripped up the sleeve on my dress shirt


How's this for a nice family portrait?

To view the whole Easter Trampoline Egg-straviganza photo series, click here

Frohe Karfreitag

If anybody wants to compete in this year's Easter Art Contest, feel free to send me your entries. In the meantime, feel free to take funky solace in this number from the Gospel Comforters entitled "Jesus Will Help Me."

Cross near the Huguenot Memorial in Franschhoek, South Africa.

Iraq Chalk, revisited

It was fun to watch new ESPN commentator Bobby Knight poke holes in the pseudoscience of bracketology after the KU game on Sunday. While the other announcers did their best to analyze the advantages of seedings and locations, Knight insisted that it didn't matter, visibly flinching when his co-anchor tried to lay a hand on his shoulder. It was pretty amusing.

However, it's a bit sad when you think of how much attention we pay to the NCAA tournament each year in comparison to other things. Like the war in Iraq, for example. If we applied the money, attention and enthusiasm we give to bracketology on solving some kind of social issue, just imagine what we could accomplish. Instead of filling out brackets, we could all submit our own exit (or occupation) strategies. If enough office pools got involved, we could put our heads together and maybe figure out a way to pull out completely before 2099.

Five years ago this month, what I remember people taking to the streets about was not the start of a war, it was our basketball team advancing to the final four. A Lawrence Journal-World story about U.S. servicemen cheering on the Jayhawks from the desert was accompanied by the glib headline, "Iraq Chalk Jayhawk," followed up a few days later by "Hawk and Awe."

This isn't to say that I don't like basketball. Seeing Mario (Mare-ee-oh, as they pronounce it) drop 8 threes and 30 points on the Longhorns on Sunday was nothing short of beautiful. And as this puff piece from today demonstrates, politics and basketball aren't entirely incompatible.

Alls I'm saying is it's been five years since the war started and our generation still doesn't seem to be paying any attention.

If you give half a s*** what other people our age are up to overseas while we watch tourney games, go to South by Southwest, get drunk and enjoy day-to-day life, I recommend visiting Doonesbury's The Sandbox, a military blog made up of posts from troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. The entries from these soldiers cover a whole range of subjects and emotions dealing with the war, and I find it pretty fascinating to read the accounts of people who are stationed there, unfiltered by media or political bias.

So I'll get off my high horse now and close this post with the wish that you all enjoy the tournament and have a great holy week. But as a veteran of final-four fall-out, let me kindly remind you not to take March Madness too literally.



Photo credits: Top photo taken from fan-submitted pics on kusports.com. Above photo from Joplin, MO circa fall 2005.

Steamboat Clutchy

But who is Clutchy Hopkins?

Even if you don't care -- and I can't say I really do -- it's a great album. You can find it at Love Garden or on iTunes.

Excerpts From The Joplin Sign Graveyard Gazette

In our off-work hours, Jenn and I moonlight as photographer and reporter for the Joplin Sign Graveyard Gazette, an independent publication chronicling commercial failures, phantoms and parking lots full of retired signs. Below is a sampling of this week's issue. Headline suggestions accepted and encouraged.


Amateur Missouri Aviator Backs Plane Into Gas Pump


Midwesterners fail to practice Aldi's 'Spend A Little, Live A Lot' Philosophy in safe, responsible manner


Giant Tornado Brings Tragic End To Huge Savings (thanks, Snakin)


R.I.P. Bob Evans


Too Much Was Riding On These Tires


(your headline here)

Music for March, part 1

After finally getting used to (i.e. learning how to tune out) the sounds of soft classical music and the occasional triumphant blast of Vivaldi in my office building, someone decided to switch the muzak to a blend of smooth jazz, lounge and lite-salsa. Though I only have to listen to it while strolling through the lobby or into the parking garage, it's amazing how sarcastic a mood it puts me in. I just want to shout at everybody, "Come on! You can't possibly be serious!"

Rather than make a spectacle, however, I decided to make a mix tape instead. Each song (well, most songs) have something to do with a particular day in March thus far. Though I'm getting ahead of myself a bit, I went ahead and posted the first half of the month for your enjoyment. You can stream the songs by clicking on them individually, or download the whole mix as a zipped file by following the link at the bottom of the post.

Hope you like it.

Saturday, March 1 -- And I Love You by Darling Dears

I didn't see any cherry blossoms in bloom, but the day's warm temperatures matched the pleasant tone of this tune.

Sunday, March 2 -- Sunday Coming by Anton Ellis

Anton sounds less like himself and more like mister Marley on this album, but it maps out the week nicely.

Monday, March 3 -- Monday's Rain by The Clientele

It rained on Monday, at least in the very early morning hours

Tuesday, March 4 -- Politics is Showbusiness by Peter Sarstedt

A fitting tune for the day's primaries, by the guy who sings the recurring song from "The Darjeeling Limited."

Wednesday, March 5 -- Birthday by Blur

"What a strange day/I think of you day."

Thursday, March 6 -- The Birthday by The Idle Race

"She had a birthday yesterday, she cried/Took off her glasses let her hair down, cried"

Friday, March 7 -- Cold Rain And Snow by The Grateful Dead

1966 at the Avalon Ballroom

Saturday, March 8 -- Casio Bossa nova by Holy F**k

Saw them play at the Record Bar on this night. Lived up to its name.

Sunday, March 9 -- Sunday by Sonic Youth

Live version

Monday, March 10 -- Dies Bildnis Ist Bezaubernd Schön from Mozart's Die Zauberflöte, aria by Modest Menzinsky

My first trip to the Opera in several years. Still a few showings at the Lyric this week -- an excellent performance if you're willing to shell out. www.kcopera.org

Tuesday, March 11 -- I Wanna Be Your Dog by Uncle Tupelo

Young Tweedy's take on the Stooges' classic

Wednesday, March 12 -- Untitled improvisation by Paul Metzger

This guy is playing a free in-store at Kief's Downtown Music in Lawrence on 3/12 at 5 p.m. He plays a custom-made 22-string banjo.

Thursday, March 13 -- This Time Tomorrow by Sisters Love

Friday, March 14 -- Friday's Child by Lee Hazlewood

Saturday, March 15 -- Problems by Mahjongg

Saturday night at the Jackpot. Don't miss Mahjongg, from Columbia by way of Chicago.

Download complete mix.

Afterthought: After seeing Bergman's "Cries and Whispers" on Tuesday I should have included Chopin's Mazurka in A Minor Op. 17 No. 4, which sifted aurally through the bookends of the film. I challenge you to find a more bittersweet, lovely and haunting mazurka as the old A Minor Op. 17 No. 4. I simply do not believe it can be done.

Today in History: March 6

From the March 6, 2003 edition of the University Daily Kansan


This is the kind of thing I used to write for the University Daily Kansan. Complete text is in the comments section, in case the scanned-in article is too hard to read (you can also click the images to enlarge). Bonus points if you can tell me the name of the poet Ryan Clinger quotes at the tail end of the story.

"Stroll On"

Recently a friend known as The Muffin Girl tipped me off to an unlikely sight -- a guitar and some drums strung up at the tippy-top of the street pole at 42nd and Oak. I thought at first she must be joking or at best speaking poetically, but as you can see, they're really there. This explains the faint but unmistakable sounds of rock and roll I hear on windy nights.

Speaking of rock and roll, Ghosty has a new Web site up with lots of great pictures, songs, press clippings and a special short video on the media page that captures Mike Nolte at his most captivating. Here's a snapshot from a short-lived lineup of Ghosty that featured Ed Epps and a 4-year-old girl.



Finally, those of you looking for a hint for the question of "Where did Wetzel find the picture for his new blog banner" might check out the following clip.



Until next time.

Tuesdays at the Tivoli

The Janus Film Series for Spring 2008 has been announced and starts tomorrow. Each movie is only $3, free for UMKC students.

Happy Leap Day

von der Berliner Abendblatt -- Friedrichshain

EXTRATAG FUER LITERATUR

Friedrichshain. Im Ambulatorium des RAW-Tempel an der Revaler Strasse 99 steigt am Freitag, 29. Februar, eine Launch-Party. An diesem Extratag erscheint erstmals das neue englischsprachige Literaturmagazin "the extra room". Herausgeber und Redakteure sind die Amerikaner Adam Collingsworth und Mara Goldwyn. Neben jeder Menge Lesestoff gibt's Live-Musik mit dbZwoVier, Lee Viajero und anderen. Los geht's um 20 Uhr. Der Eintritt frei - Spenden sind erwuenscht.

www.theextraroom.com

Buddy

I heard on the radio last night that drummer Buddy Miles died earlier this week.

I went home and put on the Ramsey Lewis version of Buddy's song "Them Changes," which he performed with Hendrix in "Band of Gypsys." I also found a nice tribute to Buddy Miles on the Funky16Corners site. They'd already posted a couple of tunes, with a nice vinyl crackle still intact.

Have a nice weekend/long live Buddy.

Eurofuchs (fuchseuro)

The Euro climbed to over 1.50 against the dollar this week, making Europe just that much farther away than it was before. However, it does look like there will be a Wetzel brother living in Berlin this year. Though it's someone else this time.

Speaking of Bundeshauptstaedte, can anyone tell me what the photo I used to make the new blog banner is from? The first person to do so wins a 2 euro and 10 cent Koelsch.

More from me once we get Internet installed, which will hopefully be this week. The girl whose connection we were piggybacking on has left the building for good, so after 2 plus years of free 'net at the Aftons, it's time to pony-up.

See you later.

Flatfile

For those of you who may have found the original art in my last post to be distasteful or simply uninspiring, do not despair. There is plenty of fantastic art on display at the Art Space building, located at the Northwest corner of 43rd and Walnut Streets just east of Main. This free show is called the Kansas City Flatfile and features the work of 171 area artists, ranging from students and beginners to professors and professionals. Most of the work is contained in portfolios in file drawers (hence the name flatfile), but there are also wall displays curated by the gallery's directors. The event is also unique in that all proceeds from the sales go directly to the artists.

The photo above was taken a year or two back of the Artspace's project wall by Jenn, who also has some stuff on display at the exhibit.

Another artist whose daily drawings I've been enjoying is T-Bit, who is completing/displaying a drawing for every day of 2008.

Back to the drawing board...

Gnome alone

I walked outside this afternoon to see my mini garden gnome had taken a face plant into the leaf debris that feeds my artificial flowers. Draped by last years St. Patrick's Day beads; yellow plastic arms still carrying a traveler's suitcase. A sunny Sunday and I can't help but wonder how long he's been like this. I guess the important thing is someone finally found him, and perhaps after his rest he'll be ready to stand up and face the inevitable springtime.

Seoul brothers come home (and other musical happenings)

If you've ever been abroad for a long spell, you know that once you return home, the most familiar things can take on a surreal character. Good pal Andrew Morgan described this splendidly in a recent blog post, which I'd like to quote from:

There are blue jays, cardinals, doves, and woodpeckers gathered around the patio birdfeeders, and the grass is half-covered with snow & dead leaves. I keep poking my head out the door to breathe in the crisp, clean air and get a look at the ever-changing sky. It's been eerie & incandescent at night, and a fast-moving assortment of transient metallic colors during the day. All of this seems a miracle to me after having been away.

Andrew's back in Kansas after quite a few months in Korea. He's got some new songs up on his MySpace page from his album, Three Months in Cook County, which will be out sometime this year. This is a picture of Andrew taken in Seoul by his Seoul-mate Kyle Hopkins.


Speaking of Kyle, he'll be coming back this week as well. If you haven't had a chance to read any of his posts about life in Korea, he's got a nice blog as well. A few of my favorite posts of his include this recollection of moments from the big city, a list of the seven words you can't say in Korea and other stories of cultural misunderstandings at their most amusing.

Here's a picture of Kyle with his students last Christmas. I can't tell you which one he is, though.


If you're in the Kansas City area this weekend, you should definitely stop by and check out Snuff Jazz at Jardine's around 11:00 or 11:30. Jardine's is a little jazz bar near 45th and Main. It's probably the exact opposite of the kind of jazz clubs that existed back when this town was rollicking its way through prohibition. It's not particularly smoky, the crowd is almost entirely white, the jazz is that of the dinner variety and if you get up and dance with anything less than the utmost restraint you'll be told it's a fire hazard (because of the candles) and asked to sit back down. So I'm excited to see what happens when Snuff comes to town.



If you're in the mood to hear some great local music but don't want to leave the comfort of your computer, then watch the most recent episode of the Turnpike, which features Suzannah Johannes. In this broadcast, the trio of Suzie, Josh and Dave perform at a retirement home (of all places), except for the last clip, which shows Suzie performing in front of a campfire with some kind of skeleton totem thing in the background. It's sweetly chilling. Or perhaps chillingly sweet.

And, as always, there's lots of great stuff for consumption at www.rangeliferecords.com. Though my favorite is probably still the video for the "Say My Name" remix of White Flight's "The Condition." In addition to being a great song, I have a soft spot for the video because I spent much of last summer in the same room where the guy locates the Space Kitty. I can only hope I absorbed some of that stardust.

Love,

LDHW

Südgelände flashbacks

November 2006

I might try and scan some of Till's black and white shots from that day later tonight. In the meantime, here's some history of the Südgelände Naturpark and how it relates to the "Fourth Nature" concept of Berlin ecologist Ingo Kowarik, who edited the book, "Wild Urban Woodlands."

our national pasttime

"As far as I'm concerned, you could cross-breed Marion Jones with a wolf and that thing should still be allowed to play baseball."

-- Stevie D., making a case for allowing performance-enhancing technology in professional sports

"There may be wars, but Dallas will always be cute."

stories

Here's three quick slices of life from the past week. If you read through to the end, you'll find a nice little Valentines photo/postcard waiting for you.

Ursinister Sights at Brainblow Blvd.

A surreal last night while driving home: the gas station at 43rd and Brainblow Blvd, which shut down 3 years ago and has been boarded up since, reopened last week as a gift store selling nothing but stuffed white teddy-bears of all sizes and carnations by the dozen. It's creepy to sit there at the stoplight with all 2,000 of those bears staring at you, and I could tell that the motorist behind me was a bit weirded out as well. In a couple of days, these bears will probably be shipped back to an amusement park warehouse where they will hibernate for another year. I can't say I'll miss them.

"At Least He Wasn't Wearing Blackface"

I sang karaoke over the weekend for the first time in years. I couldn't find a suitable tune among the pop hits and ballads of the last century, so I opted instead for the old classic, "I've Been Workin' On The Railroad." My friends later told me that it went over fine and that everyone had clapped along, but from my vantage point the general reaction was very WTF? ("wasn't that fantastic?", in case you were wondering) To keep the tune interesting, karaokemeister Brodie manipulated the sound, looping the vocal into a whooshing soundswirl that gave the "Fee Fi Fiddley Eye Oh" breakdown a very trippy quality. So I didn't get booed off the stage or anything, but it might be a while before I show my face at McCoys again. Unless I go hear Paul deejay tomorrow night.

side notee: The whole thing was eerily similar to Monday's "Questionable Content." Yet another case of life imitating Web comics.

Cries In The Night

The other night at about 12:30 I stepped onto the back fire escape for a refreshing blast of cold air. I lit a cigarette and stared out into the fog, where the red lights of KU Med Center flickered like two dozen blinking beacons on a helicopter lighthouse. Everything was quiet. At least at first.

After a few moments I began to hear a faint shrieking sound. I dismissed it initially, not wishing to acknowledge a domestic spat unless it grew impossible to ignore. Pretty soon, though, the screaming got louder, originating from somewhere in the apartments a few buildings away. Just when I had resigned myself to dialing the authorities, someone turned the volume way up and I could hear not only the screams but the blast of an A chord on an electric guitar -- a jangly, cheap stratocaster by the sound of it. The screaming quickly distinguished itself as just another garage rocker caterwauling his way through the night, and before long a harmonica joined in the prerecorded fracas. I laughed and turned to head back inside, relieved to discover that what I was hearing was not a beat-down after all -- just an unexpected and much-needed blast of rock and roll on a cold February night.

Happy Valentines Day, from me and Clinton Lake.

your pal,

lkswtzl

fogspot

A few Sundays ago Jenn and I took a walk in the fog, and after a few blocks we discovered that we'd wandered into a Caspar David Friedrich painting. The experience didn't last long -- maybe an hour or maybe five minutes, it's hard to say -- but we emerged with at least this one photograph.

More from me tomorrow. In the meantime, here's another recent photo of Jenn's and a painting by Friedrich to put you in the Valentines spirit.

Black History Moth + music

In case you didn't know, February is Black History Month here in the United States of America. I'd like to celebrate this by reproducing this gem of a short story from the vaults here at Lucubrations.

This piece, called "Black History Moth," was written last year by the multi-talented Dave Coates. Wistful, evocative and educational, you won't want to miss it.

Alternatively, if you'd rather celebrate the occasion by listening to music and jumping around and dancing, check out some of the newer offerings available on thelukebox, which you can stream or add to your iTunes if you drag the RSS logo into the podcasts tab of your iTunes library.

As a starter, allow me to suggest Vibrations Part 1 and Part 2 by Joe Brown and the Soul Eldorados.

Fat Tuesday with Wee Snuff

I actually got to see one of the shows last year where these guys played out jazz on tiny instruments. This clip features:

Mark Southerland - Stritch
Josh Adams - jr drums
Johnny Hammil - 1/8 bass
Ashley Miller - piicolophone/mic

Brambuya speaks

In a surprise turn of events, someone actually formulated a response to my question about how much e-mail woodchucks could check if they were able to check e-mail.

Mysterious Internet celebrity and blogging newcomer Brambuya's take on the issue can be read here.

Brambles -- a saxophonist/library scientist who also answers to aliases such as Rinky-Dink, BeepBeepMan and Moon-kick -- claims to be from Tinseltown, but I'm pretty sure he lives in Massachusetts.

I'd encourage you to check out his instructive essay, "Nice lick: jazz music for the uninitiated" and leave a comment or two. Brambuya is a hot new talent in the blogging world, and I want to do my best to encourage him.

pictures of horses

Just because.