The Power Of Words

Sorry for the short absence, amongst other things I lost my internet connection for 5 days. I can do a bit of web surfing at work, but whenever I'm home I normally have the laptop fired up while I'm watching the tv. Without it, oh em gee. Cut off! Is this what being on Survivor feels like? Without the poor hygiene, rice rations and scheming. I'd like an immunity necklace though. Tribal accessories, so hot right now. Sorry, where was I?

I spent some time over the past couple of days thinking about the power of words. Words can hurt and heal. Inspire and disempower.

Peter and I already have a whole list of cute names for each other. Yes, we are those people. A harsh word at work can make for a bad day. Recently Peter and I were walking down the street holding hands (as we usually do) when an older lady came up to us and told us we were a sweet couple, making our day with just a couple of kind words. (Mind you we've also had at least 3 occasions when Mumblers, as we've come to label them, walk past and mumble chicken shit insults at us as they pass. Here's a heads up Mumblers, enunciate.)

At this point, lets have some musical relief before passing on:

What are words worth? Indeed.

I'm also currently reading (and enjoying) Embassytown by China Miéville, a novel that places language and communication at the very centre of the story. I find Miéville one of the most incredibly creative writers working in science fiction today, and this book about Language uses language in a creative way to examine the dramatic and unexpected effects that communication can have. There is a fantastic review in The Guardian by science fiction heavy hitter Ursula K. Le Guin

(And if you have a moment, check out Miéville's tumblr too, where he posts all sorts of interesting stuff. Then spend a moment contemplating the fact that he's also the humpiest piece of sex on legs working in science fiction today.)

Every week I download podcasts and vodcasts (speaking of words, because language is an organic creature we sometimes make them up!) by the guys at Monocle Magazine. This week there was a fantastic vodcast called Class Acts about some interesting goings on in Bogotá, Columbia.

The second story on the vodcast really affected me, and it was about an organisation whose name means The Power of Words. Don José Alberto Gutierrez is a rubbish truck driver, who lives with his wife in a disadvantaged suburb of Bogotá. Over the years he would rescue books that he found in the rubbish, until he amassed a collection of over 10,000 volumes. Along the way he used rescued books to educate himself, and now the ground floor of his house has become a community library

Watch the vodcast and have a look for the website of La Fuerza de la Palabras because they explain the amazing feat this man has achieved, and his noble aims to bring literacy, culture and advancement to his (and other) communities. [Note: click the little language flag widgets on the right hand side of their web page for an English Translation.] Watch it and let your cold dead heart melt a little/lot.

Then read a good book, or say a kind word to someone.

Date Nights

Peter and I are on very different work schedules, while I do a 35hr week 8.30-4 office job these days Peter's work has him on a variety of rotating shifts with quite a bit of evening work. Much of the time Peter's 'weekend' in Wednesday and Thursday, as it was this week. So last night we caught up with my friend David, who was in town for the evening from Newcastle, for dinner and some beers. David is likewise in the first flushes of a new romance, so much of last night was given over to all three of us talking excitedly about what the future holds.

On account of Peter's shifts he's often at home while I'm at work, so the day is peppered with lots of sweet text messages and emails backwards and forwards. One of his emails yesterday contained a link to a newspaper story about a feature length documentary movie showing in cinemas for one week only, starting tonight.



Kylie Minogue's "Aphrodite: Les Folies" concert. IN 3D.

Now not only can you love each sparkle, and each spangle, but you can practically reach out and touch the bouncing pecs on the dancing boys!

So I jumped online and bought tickets, and Peter and I have a date tonight with Ms Minogue (and a cinema full of very excited gay boys, no doubt).

Joy

ME AT NINE, PERFORMING TO MADONNA IN SUMMER '91! from Robert Jeffrey on Vimeo.

I could (and have) watched this video over and over. Such joy and self expression!

This goes some way towards lifting the sadness I feel about Kirk Murphy and the so called sissy boy experiment. [Anderson Cooper's story on Kirk can be watched here and here.]

A Good One

Even though Tuesdays are essentially my Mondays (my weekend is Sunday & Monday), a quick mental inventory this morning revealed not a hint of Tuesday-itis. I was awake an hour earlier than I needed to be, but already the sun was shining brightly and my outlook was equally sunny. Who knew? So instead of rolling over and trying to get some more sleep I decided to carpe the diem and get going.

While I was pottering and getting ready it struck me that it has been a long, long time since I walked into work. Home to work is around 5kms (3-ish miles) and is far enough to get a bit of a sweat on, but not so far that I feel exhausted for the rest of the day. This morning was more like Summer than Spring, so I put on my sturdy shoes and some sunscreen and I walked to work.

I took a different route than I used to and I think it shaved a bit of time off my old walk. I made it in well under an hour without pushing it, and according to Google Maps my route was 4.9kms. Pleasant. You know how once you spot someone on crutches/with their arm in a sling or whatever, it seems like you continue to spot them for the rest of the day? This morning it was discarded televisions. In a half hour walk, and not walking through an area full of rubbish, I spotted three. That's statistically significant, surely?

My work day was pleasant. This morning's coffee was good. We had plenty of staff on for what turned out to be a fairly quiet day. The office was pretty quiet too, and I was able to concentrate on my work without too many interruptions. I even made enough space in the day to do some creative work, and make a big dent in the planning for the store promotions and windows for the 3 stores for the next 12 months. Yay.

Then when I got home there was a slim parcel poking out of my letterbox. Squee. A CD I should have bought years ago (considering what a huge fan I am) and finally got around to ordering from Amazon UK, after not finding it anywhere here in Sydney. (On sale too, it only cost me something like $10!)


The Platinum Collection. The very best of the very best. Even the crack in the back of the gem case couldn't put a dent in this day.

A New Love Affair

I've always been a big fan of the pop group Sugababes, ever since I heard the cool laidback rhythms of their first hit Overload (here's a fab live version from Top Of The Pops). Part of the charm for me was Siobhan Donaghy's lead vocals on the track, with an edge that I found really appealing.

Well, after four years with the group, still being a 17 year old teenager, and coping (by all accounts) a pretty tough bullying from fellow band member Keisha Buchanan, Donaghy was depressed and climbed out of a window while on tour in Japan, ran away and quit the band. Other band members would feel the wrath of Buchanan and her fellow band mate Mutya Buena, and the Sugababes history would be one of line-up changes. Last year Buchanan, the only original band member left, was sacked for bullying the other two current members Heidi and Amelle after they both threatened to quit. Buchanan has since been replaced, but the group has come under lots of scorn in the UK for bearing little or no relation to the group. (Which I think is a little harsh, given that Heidi has been with the group since Donaghy's departure in 2001.)

Anyhoo, I was following video links on youtube when I discovered that Donaghy had released some critically acclaimed, if not commercially successful, solo albums. I listed to a track from her first second album "Ghosts" and now I'm hooked! Her style is much more indie and edgier than the work the Sugababes would go on to do, with some interesting production and world instruments.

"Don't Give It Up" - Siobhan Donaghy's first solo single from the Ghosts album

I just downloaded the Ghosts album from itunes, and these are my two favourite tracks so far:

"Ghosts" by Siobhan Donaghy (unofficial video made by a fan)

"Halcyon Days" by Siobhan Donaghy (video made by the same fan as above)

She hasn't had all that much commercial success, as I mentioned before, but it's really a shame that she hasn't. Her sound sits nicely amongst other singers I'm a fan of, like Kate Bush and Roisin Murphy. I'm now a fan!

Archie

I had a really broken night's sleep last night, finally culminating in me losing my patience with tossing and turning and getting up not long after 5am. Sadly (sometimes) I'm one of those people that wakes up easily and is fully awake in a finger snap, so the only thing for it is to get up, or maybe read, but do anything other than lie in bed and wait for tiredness to return. My regular working week is Tuesday to Saturday these days, so I wasn't stressed about having to get up early for work this morning.

So I pottered around a bit, then came back to bed and watched youtube clips of the earlier seasons (not shown in Australia) of my beloved tv show QI. [Official website and QI on youtube.] I could not love Stephen Fry more! It's true. About 7am I started to get drowsy, so I rolled over and went back to sleep until just before 9am.

I hadn't been up long when my friend Judy rang about 9.30 and suggested we head on in to the Art Gallery of NSW to see the portrait competition The Archibald Prize. Judy doesn't work any more and so she and I often use my Mondays off to catch up and do fun stuff. Today also dawned a glorious mild day, so it was lovely to get out and about in it.

It also saved me from my one big 'plan' for the day. Housework.

One thing I love about urban Australians is just how much we appreciate and use our galleries. The Archibald has been going strong since 1921 and is so heavily patronised that they have to have crowd control. Winners, and the inevitable controversies, make the prime time news. There's a people's choice selection, and a 'packers prize' for the favourite of the storeroom packers. Even on a Monday morning the line for the exhibition snaked around into another gallery space.

These days a ticket into the Archibald also gets you into its 2 sister competitions, the Wynne Prize (landscape paining or figurative sculpture) and the Sulman Prize (subject, genre or mural painting). For only the third time since 1921, this year the Wynne and Archibald were won by the same artist, Sam Leach. I had a shortlist of favourite's in both exhibitions, but was completely entranced by Leach's 2 small jewel like paintings (especially his landscape), so I had no quibble with the outcome.

The first thing I spotted when we walked into the Archibald was a huge portrait of a musical favourite of mine CW Stoneking.

"CW Stoneking" by Cara Fletcher

I only discovered Stoneking recently but I'm swept away by his unique pre-war jazz and blues style. To quote his website his work swings from "lonesome field holler blues, to hokum blues duets, to full blown jungle epics". His songs make me think of prohibition gin, mixed race bayou bars and rolled down stocking tops. Amazingly for someone so steeped in blues traditions, although he was born to American parents Stoneking is an Aussie and lives in Melbourne.

"Jungle Blues" by CW Stoneking

After a truly fab ramble through the gallery, some lunch, and a walk through the park, we ended up where else but at Tiffany's. (I don't ever think I've stood as straight.) We strolled further, fondled some cashmere at House of Cashmere, bought comestibles at the David Jones foodhall, browsed for books, and had tea in The Strand Arcade before heading for home late in the afternoon.

Housework be damned.

The Obsession Continues

I understand I'm one of a very small number of Mari Wilson obsessives (Hi Thom!) so bear with me. I had to share a couple of clips I hadn't seen before, firstly a film clip to accompany her biggest single release "Just What I Always Wanted", and secondly a live version of the same song from over 20 years later.

I don't remember seeing this at the time, I guess I must have though because this song did quite well in the Aussie charts and would no doubt have been played on the music video shows here. Unless there were several different versions floating around. Most of the clips of Mari that pop up on youtube are live performances at concerts or on variety tv shows.

The audio and video quality are not the best in this 2008 clip, but she's still got it. Gone are the huge band and the numerous back up singers but her voice is still pretty great I think. Sure those really high notes were always a challenge, but wow it's great to see her doing so well with it over 20 years later. She had some health problems for a number of years, and didn't really perform, so it makes me happy to see her performing again.

The Neasdon Queen of Soul - LIVE!

A couple of years ago I wrote a short post about my 20+ year long obsession with the original Voice of the Beehive herself Mari Wilson. Aside from the campery and retro glamour that she affected in the 80s, I've always loved her genuine warmth and that voice! Her version of "Cry Me A River" still gives me goosebumps.

Earlier today I was cruising youtube, as one does, and I happened across the channel of Julia Fordham, one of Mari's original back-up singers The Marionettes. Julia has posted a half dozen clips of Mari (and her, natch) performing live on various tv shows and in concert. Fabulous! Many of my favourites are on here like "Beware Boyfriend", "The End of the Affair", "Just What I Always Wanted", "One Day is a Lifetime"... etc.

Bows to present... Miss... Mari... Wilson!

With Julia Fordham on backing vocals!

Currently Loving

a) Lisa Reagan's track "Al'infini (Project Runway Re-Mix)". So called because her track "Al'infini" was remixed and used as the music for Wendy Pepper's runway show in the finale of the first season of the U.S. "Project Runway" tv show. [You can listen to an mp3 here.]

b) Cowboys!


c) And Indians!


d) Dill pickles. (Unrelated to the above.)

e) Glam rock!

f) Elizabeth Knox's new novel The Angel's Cut, the very enjoyable sequel to The Vintner's Luck. Even though the novel has a cool, sometimes almost detached, emotional tone much of the time I think the format of the novel escapes some of the issues I felt with the first book (the abbreviated chapter format, where each chapter was a one day visit on the same annual anniversary). Plus what's not to love about gay angels, the Roaring 20's, airplane stuntmen and the early golden days of cinema?

Yellow, Red, Black Or White...

...add a little bit of moonlight!

1976. We were 12 and already knew we weren't particularly interested in those pretty girls, girls, girls. Some realisations come early and easily. Probably years earlier when I showed Jamie mine, and he showed me his. (With a bit of coaxing.) What we did have an interest in though was the mid 70s obsession with retro. Biba clothes. Manhattan Transfer. Art Deco. And the oom-pah ragtime sound of Sailor's "Girls, Girls, Girls".

I mentioned this song to a friend over dinner last night. Someone who I have a newfound respect for when it comes to all things obscure and vintage. (Someone who 'gets' Sparks, just for starters.) His response? "I've got their albums. On vinyl, of course."

Le sigh. I love my friends.

Live Blogging The Eurovision Song Contest Second Semi-Finals

Mikey (the lovely ex) invited a few of us over tonight for lashings of champagne, pizza and the round 2 of Eurovision semi-finals. I tried to get a drinking game going, one scull for every key change... but frankly nobody can drink that much. At this juncture can I also say that this year is shaping up to be a diappointment. Maybe it's the climate of global financial crisis, but this year has precious few really crazy acts. For starters, where are all the drag queens and the costume tear-aways? Even the pyrotechnics seemed somehow diminished this year.



Croatia: First act of the evening and already I'm struggling for something amusing to write. I'm guessing by the "she's in white, he's in black" motif that it's some sort of battle of good versus evil. Or maybe they're singing "Ebony and Ivory"?

Ireland: Chick rock, Irish style! Sort of Joan O'Jett with the Bangles... and Bridgitte Neilsen on bass. Don't ask me, I have less than no idea.

Latvia: Somebody turn down the strobes because I think the lead singer is fitting. I haven't seen anyone that wide eyed and wired looking since the Mardi Gras laneway recovery at The Beresford Hotel, 1992.

Serbia: There is something about Serbian humour (and pop music) that doesn't translate well. Ommpah Loompa pixie shoes, a Phil Spectre 'fro and a petulant Alice (far from Wonderland) with enormous breasts. Sorry, just plain weird and not in a good way.

Poland: Modern interpretive dance! Caftan wearing back up singers! Rhythmic gymnastics!

Norway: In summary, a pretty boy with a violin, Aerobics Norway Style, a dancer loses a shoe. A popular one with the chicken hawks.



Cyprus: Pretty song, pretty young girl. Nice. Nothing to see here, move on.

Slovakia: If I were to say to you a) white baby grand piano b) candles c) a woman in a long white frock d) a dark bearded stranger in a dinner suit... would that say power ballad duet to you? Shame she missed a bunch of notes in there.

Denmark: Hello handsome! And what's not to love about a strapping lad with a nice set of shoulders and a kravat?

Slovenia: Shadow puppets!

Hungary: Somewhere a podium is missing a go-go boy. Gayest. Routine. And. Tightest. Pants. Ever!

Azerbaijan: I think I blanked this one, or went to the bathroom, or maybe had a catatonic episode. Snoresville with a vague Shakira sound.

Greece: This song was written by a pair of Australians making it the unofficial Aussie entry! I have no idea what the song was about, but OMG the special effects! The conveyor belt! The hydraulic ramp! The skin tight pants! Meanwhile, here's a thought provoking picture of the singer Sakis:


Nice.

Lithuania: A hard act to follow after Greece. A nice looking young man in a hat. Borderline dullsville after the big Greek in the skin tight pants.

Moldova: Vaguely slutty traditonal costumes. Nice purple boots. I think my attention is starting to waver. Can you tell?

Albania: Nikki Webster [Aussie cultural reference] with a pair of evil midgets and a Blue Man in teal sequins. Is it just me, the champagne, or are things getting weirder?



Ukraine: You may not know that the Ukraine was colonised by Romans in mirrorball glitter costumes, but based on the semi naked gladiators alone The Winners Of Eurovision 2009!

Estonia: Is it me or are the songs getting duller? Nice song, and she had nice hair? I've got nothing.

Netherlands: The veterans of Eurovision. As the compares said "The cast of 'Cocoon'..." in rhinestone suits. Ha!

Cultural presentation, and we're at the end. Blah. I'm kind of disappointed in the line-up this year. There is a distinct lack of truly crazy. I'm hoping tomorrow night will still hold a few surprises...

Live Blogging The Eurovision Song Contest First Semi-Finals

I tuned in late, so only got to see the last 6 of the 18 contestants. Some would say this is a good thing, but pshaw! I say. I has a sad, I only caught a third of the semi-final action! Thank goodness for brief recaps otherwise I might have completely missed a) a nelly disco dancer, b) a Czech nerd superhero, c) Belgian Elvis, d) 5 seconds of boring in a white suit from Belarus e) a Swedish operatic diva, f) Armenian riverdance, g) Andorran Girls-Aloud, h) some boybandishness i) Turkish disco bellydance (trans cultural!) j) Israeli worthy drummingness (the sisters are doing it for themselves) k) Bulgarian Lord of The Rings/Dance and l) Iceland, without Bjork...

So far the Russian hosts are doing an awesome job. They're almost incomprehensible!

So, my thoughts on the final 6 of the first Semi-Finals:

FYR Macedonia: cock rock is alive and well and living in the country we now like to think of as The Former Yugoslavian Republic of Bon Jovi

Romania: buckets of fake tan, 4 dancing girls in floaty frocks (wtf, Romanian water nyads?), treacherous dancing in high heels on a slidy glass stage, and a sound like every other Romanian entry I can think of. Borderline awesome.

Finland: Finland still thinks baseball caps turned backwards and fire dancers are rock (and roll).

Portugal: actually kind of nice! Plus, a squeezebox on stage. (No, I'm not referring to the singer.)

Malta: whoa. Power ballad on half wattage. Trying hard not to work in a cheap shot about the Rock of Gib-Malta but suffice to say (and I quote my friend Brendan) "what a lovely big dress, and my... isn't it full!"

Bosnia Herzegovina: first impression, regional touring company of Les Miserables in all white costumes. Second impression (see first impression).

Now we're onto the voting, and can I just say that the hosts are off the hook. And a little drunk I think. Wait, is he holding her up? And why does he keep kissing her? Eww, it's like an office Christmas party in here all of a sudden.

Interlude:
Russian cultural presentation for make good the Eurovision Song Contest! Cossacks! Russian army choirs! That thing where they spin the woman in a traditional costume so her dress twirls up! Hip hop dancers! More cossacks (seriously, they must have exhausted all the red synthetic satin in Russia). A pair of fake lesbians miming desultorily to their 'big hit'!

Results:
This year there is much talk of The Magic Button, and frankly the way the Russian host keeps leering about it I'm guessing it's not something he gets to push all that often. Instead it just starts up some graphic that looks like one of those fake email notification they use on tv show computers when they can't use anything by Microsoft. Anticlimax! So the 10 winners are announced. No Elvis! No superhero!

Just pray there are some drag queens in the second semi-finals!

R.I.P. Ms Wills

Sadness. One of the great disco divas has left the stage. According to her official website Viola Wills passed away May 6th after a long illness, aged 69.

Her biggest hit without a doubt was her disco version of the 1970s Gordon Lightfoot ballad (and years before the song was made popular again by the film "54") "If You Could Read My Mind":

"If You Could Read My Mind" from a Netherlands tv show, 1981.

Ah, what a tale my thoughts would tell. Indeed. I also loved this track, the deceptively sweet sounding slow burner "Gonna Get Along Without You Now":

"Gonna Get Along Without You Now", 1979.

Who hasn't wanted to say that to someone, somewhere along the line? One of the greatest break-up songs of all time.

Vale Ms Wills, and a big thank you from the dancefloor.

Absenteeism

Before I start this blog post I just have to share this, I'm watching one of the morning music video shows and they are doing 'one hit wonders'. You know what, Vanilla Ice rhymed "lyrical poet" with "and I know it", which is a) kind of ironic in its lack of lyrical poetic-ness and b) awesome!

Anyhoo, hey everybody! Sorry for the unexpected blog hiatus. Rumours of my demise are vastly overexaggerated. In truth I had a phenomenally busy start to the week (month end processing at work), which meant I staggered home brain dead and barely able to string words together on Monday and Tuesday. Then Wednesday, Thursday and last night I was out until fairly late. A latter half of the week that involved lots of work (still), but balanced with beers, all-male jelly wrestling (hello, awesome), catching up with friends and sushi. Oh, and I scored a big bag of yummy Alpaca yarn last night from my friend Frances who sees an absence of crochet in her future, and is therefore de-stashing!

Video show update, this is playing now:

One hit wonder shows are almost exclusively the domain of the white boy rapper! Oh, and aside from the word "informer" this is thoroughly impenetrable to me. I guess I'll never know if having your "boom-boom down" is a good thing, or not. Factoid: Snow's one and only album was called "12 Inches Of Snow". Ick.

But last night wasn't a late one as I seem to have scored myself a streaming head cold in the process. Ugh. There was a period of about 4 days where the last vestiges of the consumptive hacking was gone, gone!, but now it's a world of Butter Menthols, tissues with aloe vera* and a fresh round of... consumptive hacking. Yay me. Just a cold though, no swine flu, so put away your face masks scaredy cats.



So a quiet weekend is on the cards. I have a dinner invitation tonight (which I might not make at this stage), and I might go to knitting at the pub tomorrow afternoon if this cold is a bit better, but aside from copious amounts of internet porn that's about it. Now be a sweetie and fetch mummy a Butter Menthol, there's a pet.

* At first I had a bit of an Squick Factor about greasy feeling tissues, but the no nose redness results overcame my misgivings. That's a big plus for aloe vera right there.

Thank You Internets!

There is a fab new commercial here on Oz tv for clothing/underwear brand Bonds. Or as we like to think of them The Company That Can't Afford To Keep Making Their Underwear In Australia And Fires 1850 Workers But Can Afford To Reward Their Directors With Pay Increase Of Up To 170%. Asswipes, for short. Which reminds me, I have an ethical dilemma... do I a) stop buying my favourite underwear of all time, their Hipster Trunks, in protest or b) continue to buy them in order to hopefully support the remaining workers staying employed? Discuss.

So, the commercial has a great look, slow-mo footage of a vintage styled Sarah Murdock working a hulu hoop, but what has really been driving me crazy is the fantastic music track. It sounded somewhat familiar, but I couldn't place it. 1 minute of consulting The Oracle and I had it. Bows to present:

"Aphrodisiac" by Bow Bow Bow (live version). Love it!

SIA

The video cavalcade continues! So you know, sorry if I'm like crashing your browser or whatever with all these clips (and dial-up people, really, broadband... think about it), but colour and movement! I am all about the colour and movement.

I have a new love. Aussie songbird Sia. Watch this clip of her on Letterman late last year for starters (and then listen to Letterman and Paul gush):

And the sign language and painted hands thing is something she does a lot of the time. Aside from the fact that I love her voice and her songwriting skills (she recently wrote and worked with Lady GaGa, apparently) I'm really impressed with her decision to sign in many of her clips. I'd like her even without it, but I just think it's a very cool thing for her to do.

I also wrote about the adorable Captain|Over who creates youtube clips of him signing pop songs. There is a common thread, I've been thinking of learning to sign for a while now. Aside from wanting to be able to communicate with deaf and hearing impaired people, I'm a big believer in life long learning. Auslan is actually a whole language, not just a way of translating English. I know I'm only in my 40s, but I think everyone should mentally stimulate themselves with learning new languages, and it's proved to be a way of staying mentally agile as you age.

Anyhoo, Sia. Check out this amazing clip of her song "Buttons" on "Live With Jools Holland", using the ultraviolet light concept which she would then re-create on our local show "Rove Live":

I love this song!

I just saw a brief interview with her on one of our morning music video shows, and she comes across as really sweet, funny and articulate. Ok, I'm gushing. Stopping now! Go check out her website and search for her other clips on youtube. As one of our tv presenters here in OZ used to always say, do yourself a favour.

There Is An Epidemic Of Boy on Boy Kissing In The Music Industry!

Ok, not quite an epidemic, but here's a few.

Belgian singer (and serious mustache owner) Tom Helsen wants you to not worry about Every Little Thing. So don't, m'kay! Cute song, Tom's a bit of a dish, and stick with the clip until the denouement. Awww.

[Via The Gays of Daytime blog.]

Meanwhile super dishy Matt Alber thinks it's The End Of The World, so you might as well look your best with a new haircut... if you're going to face the music and dance that is.

I've posted this clip before... but some things bare repeating. Boys dancing! Fedoras! A barbershop without the quartet!

Talk To Me Some Crafts!

Let's Craft Talk! Let's Craft Talk!

"You make stuff that I desire. All I want to do is acquire!"

God I love Leslie Hall.

How Do Your Sign "You're Adorable!"?

I was cruising a favourite, ahem, adult entertainment site for gay men (Porn site QueerClick, which is unsurprisingly NSFW! Thank goodness.) when I noticed a little news story about hottie youtuber Captain|Over, aka Michael DiMartino. DiMartino is a handsome gay New Yorker, a sign language interpreter by trade, who through a mixture of signing, dance and rhythmic cutting, is creating music clips that both the hearing and deaf communities can enjoy.

Especially if you also appreciate a bit of hot boy shirtless torso with your signing!

Bloggers ORD to LAX have a lovely interview with DiMartino on their blog.

Bows to present:

Apparently Britney recently added his clip of her song "Womanizer"[sic] to her own website. Sweet! Rather than get bent out of shape about copyright as many groups do about youtube, at least she could appreciate the fact that he is bringing her music to another audience. He's got some great moves and I love the way he incorporates the signing into the whole feel of the dance. Very cool.

[Also, check out Jamie and Marc of ORD to LAX while we're on the topic of adorableness!]

To The Max

Max Sharam: "Be Firm (With Me Baby)"


Max Headroom & Art of Noise: "Paranormia"


Max Richter: "Song"


Max Q: "Sometimes"