:: Archipelapogo ::

:: 26.2.04 ::

Saskatoon is in the room

There's a tour bus of old folks outside with plates from Saskatchewan. That's got to be one hell of a long drive. And it is, some 33 hours accoding to MapQuest. 33 Hours. On a tour bus. Seems to me that if I were in my golden years and wanting to travel, I'd want to get there as fast as I could, but to each their own. I'm more fascinated by the bright purple lugnuts on the bus anyways. They're quite fantastic and I'm pretty pissed I don't have my camera with me today.

On a completely different (distorted) note, Ben Weasel has a blog. He kind of talks about baseball and touches on some politics, but you really can't expect too much out of the buy that wrote "Jump up and down, dance on the couch, stuff a potato in your mouth". I never was a huge Screeching Weasel fan, but pretty high on my short-list of songs that are essential to cover should I ever find myself in a band is "I Wanna Be a Homosexual". Brilliant song.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Satire!

Popdork: SubPop Records tears the kids at Pitchfork a new one. Hilarity ensues.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Back-ish

Sorry it's been so long. I'm just working on pulling myself back together and I've got a lot of soul-searching and whatnot to do. But, I'm slowly getting back to a normal-ish life and, most assuredly, falling in love with the 'net again. So things will err on the side of links for an indefinite amount of time.

So in that vein: The Seton Gallery at the University of New Haven is opening a special exhibit looking at a potential photograph of Vincent Van Gogh. They're using forensic sciences and some of his self-portraits to try to say with as much veracity as they can that it is in fact a rare photo of one of my favorite artists. Sweet stuff.
:: Scott [+] ::
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When it pains, it roars

Things are likely to be pretty quiet around these parts for a little while. Life's pretty hectic right now and I need to clear my head, somehow.

Anyways, the whole internet thing seems kind of frivolous right now. I'll be back at some point in time in the near future, but I can't say for sure when that will be.
:: Scott [+] ::
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Reunited Pixies to play 11 dates before Coachalla

Dates unannounced as of yet, but I'm hoping at least one of them will be somewhere in Texas. Talk about some hard tickets to score, I'm betting.

Also in concert news: Dallas folk may be interested to know that Sonic Youth is coming back on March 18th, Gypsy Tea Room. Calexico plays the night before in the Tea Room (small side).
:: Scott [+] ::
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I think I'm going to print up a Steve Nash-esque "No War! Shoot for Peace!" t-shirt

The 25th Annual Dallas Cup is welcoming a youth team from Afghanistan at this year's tournament.

"Afghanistan has endured nearly 25 years of war, hardship and isolation. As with any country emerging from such a dark past, its future lies in the hands of its youth. Our Under 14 team represents the footballing future of the country. The opportunity for these young men to travel to the USA, to compete with so many nations, and most importantly, to live with American families is incredibly valuable. It will not only enhance their footballing skills, it will provide them with a unique experience. That experience which will do much to increase their understanding of the wider world with which they will have to engage as they grow up.

For those not in the know, the Dallas Cup is probably the world's largest youth soccer tourney, bringing in over 140 teams from around the world in various age groups. Past alumni include Beckham, Owen, and Claudio Reyna (and last year, Freddy Adu played).

Another big storyline this year is the possibility of a combined Israeli/Palestenian youth team. The Dallas Morning News is the only site I can find reporting it so far, but they're registration is a bitch, so here's a summary of their report:

Dallas Cup officials, always aiming to leverage youth soccer into a tool for diversity and unification, are close to clinching perhaps their greatest achievement.

Executive director Gordon Jago says he is 90 percent certain that efforts to bring a combined Palestinian-Israeli squad will prove successful.

Dallas Cup officials are working with nonprofit organizations to assemble an under-12 and under-14 team from Israel, combining Jewish and Arab boys. The group will play under the name "Peace Team."

They are working with the U.S. State Department to ensure that visas are obtained in time for the April 4-11 tournament. Dallas Cup officials are identifying potential local sponsors for the politically significant venture.

Anyone in the D/FW area that wants to come out with me to some of these games, lemme know. Supporting this kind of initiative seems like an important thing to do. Plus, you get to support youth soccer. (cross-posted to SpoFi)
:: Scott [+] ::
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Diversions

Revolution to Reform: Chinese Propaganda Posters of the Four Modernizations Era

Virtual Museum of China '89 (both of these via plep)

More than you ever wanted to know about Rorschach Tests - includes pics of the original 10 images.

Lil' G n' R - the World's first all-kid Guns N' Roses Tribute Band
:: Scott [+] ::
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Best of AskMe Vol. 5

Sorry, I had this done last night and then inadvertantly erased it. I was too tired and lazy to redo it all. Anyways.

Last week here. For the week of January 27-February 2:

..::Why the Man doesn't want you laminate your SS Card::..

..::Theme CD suggestions of the week: songs with misunderstood intent::..

..::Why won't my dog stop peeing on people???::..

..::The city of Angels sans auto - good luck with that one::..

..::Keeping track of the ever-increasing number of logins, passwords, and PINs that this crazy modern world keeps thrusting upon us::..

..::Audiophiles recommend headphones::..

..::Poking around for opinions on acupuncture::..

..::Does Space Stink?::..

..::Using AskMe for Market Research, what would make the perfect video rental shop?::..

..::Should I tip the cute girl at the Chili's take-out counter?::..

..::Turning off the light, singing a lullaby, sleeping with the fishes::..

Enjoy. See you next week. Go see Charles.
:: Scott [+] ::
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John Kerry in Doonesbury

In 1971. Trudeau seems to have had some mixed feelings about the soldier-cum-activist.

Also worth a bookmark, Electablog. Heavy on links, not too much editorializing. (via anil)
:: Scott [+] ::
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Mappage

A lot of people have been playing with the map-maker of countries and states visited, but I found it useful for an alternate purpose. For a long time, I've been looking for some kind of program that will let me highlight the countries from which I've met people. I've been fortunate to have met people from a lot of various places, and I always wanted to see it all at once, so here's my map. I only counted people who I could distinictly remember (a face or name or relationship). I'm pretty sure I've met people from some of the other countries (Ireland and the Scandanavian countries have been frustratingly fruitless) but unless I can remember specific folks, I didn't count it. While the area is quite large, the site tells me I've only got 21% of the countries of the world covered. Obviously, I need to meet some more Africans. (and for the record, my countries and states visited).
:: Scott [+] ::
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