Dork Geek Nerd

"Rational romantic mystic cynical idealist"

Thursday, June 28, 2012

One raise of her shoulder says more than 40 poets could

An effective art exhibition should hint at the sophistication of a bygone age, raise questions about "mysterious" models, leave you humbled before a lifesize bronze statue, include a hue impossible to categorise as either blue or green, have you searching painted shadows for hidden detail, be seasoned with a dash of pretention, remind you of visiting cousins in a country town, blur the line between religious imagery and fairytale fantasy, turn twilights into alien worlds, successfully reinvent trees to resemble wisps of smoke, not explain everything, cause you to contemplate - for just a second - the logistics of art theft, seduce with its beauty, disturb with its horror, deserve to be walked through again, and linger in the mind's eye. "Australian Symbolism: The Art Of Dreams" at the Art Gallery Of NSW is such an exhibition.

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Smartphone killed the trivia star

AM shouted me entry to the 10th anniversary Supanova pop-culture convention. CM sprung for an autographed photo from Natalia Tena (Osha in "Thrones", Nymphadora Tonks in "Potter"). She was more tanned and British-sounding than I expected. Friendly and sweet. The con was very crowded and you had to squeeze your way along the dealer aisles. There was a noticeable growth in fan illustrators flaunting copyrights and I could smell future cease and desists. Noah Hathaway's Q&A was excellent. The former child star of "The Neverending Story" still does some acting, but is now a tattooist, bike builder and serious martial artist. He was full of freaky/funny anecdotes and jokingly accepted a marriage proposal from one besotted audience member, promised to tattoo the Auryn medallion from "T/N/S" on another, and agreed to give a seminar at the karate school of another (he holds black belts in two styles). Comic writer/artist/nice guy David Mack ("Kabuki", "Daredevil") was interesting, too. There was a groan from those in attendance when the official called time on his revealing discussion of life in the comic-book industry. CM and I chatted to him further at the Kings table, where I purchased a coupla prints, one of which was his version of Gaiman's Death character. We were impressed with the talents of muso Kirby Krackle, who sang about all kinds of geek-tastic stuff and could play guitar and sing well in a number of genres. (Though his uke needs work.) Sample choon - http://goo.gl/wn9yf. I later ordered his CDs from Amazon. Cosplayers were ubiquitous, with "Sucker Punch" and "Adventure Time" popular new source material. My favourite was a chick doing the Log Lady from "Twin Peaks". She said I was the 12th person to recognise her over the weekend. There was a special on framing signed snaps, so I went a tad nuts... Tilda Swinton in battle dress as Jadis in "The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe", a classy B&W promo shot of Stephen Fry and Emma Thompson from "Peter's Friends" (autographed by both!), and a multi-pic celebration of the career of Joanna Lumley (Purdey, Patsy, etc.). Best. Supanova. Ever.


Happy 100th birthday to the shade of Alan Turing.


Edit: I think I like this KK ditty even better - http://goo.gl/m0ev8

Saturday, June 16, 2012

Devil's avocado

Stanley Lau's artwork is the bob-omb. Watch the slideshow and tell me I'm wrong - http://goo.gl/6GtGr

Thursday, June 14, 2012

-Shooka- -Shooka-

Told the lass at Subway I wanted all three cheeses, please. She daintily arranged a slice of each type on the bread. Blessed her heart, then explained that what I'd meant was triple cheese. She ohhh-ed and added the rest. The combination of 12 slices of Swiss, Tasty and Old English was strangely sour - but not in an appetising Kristen Stewart way. I don't recommend getting all three cheeses on your sub.

I do, howevs, recommend this "Star Wars" LEGO tribute to MC Escher, as flagged by my buddy LA - http://goo.gl/J5j83

Wednesday, June 06, 2012

Radical Rick and MX Mug

Peeps were sending me cool music-related links all day.

First, TG shared an amazing track done by his bro' - http://soundcloud.com/simon-grove/axe-test-1-1

Then JC pointed out this sassy symphony (brunette bob FTW) - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FIfbghHdG1s

CM was next, with a tip-off about an OCMS-esque number I might enjoy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xjdkc14-zwQ

Before the SBS Pop Asia FB feed fed me this fun clip - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EZTUYwjWBs

I'd planned to listen to First Aid Kit's exceptional CD "The Lion's Roar" (2012) on repeat, but I didn't mind being interrupted by any of these.

Now, another strong song is demanding my attention. It features in the background of the third part of "24/7: The Road To Pacquiao/Bradley" (War Bradley!) and has an unpleasant video -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1bk8s7JpKv0&ob=av3e

Hope you find something you like at my sonic white elephant stall.

Saturday, June 02, 2012

Bitches get stitches

The finale of "The Ultimate Fighter 15" was my Saturday morning cartoons. Pizza Twisties were my cereal. Beck's beer was my milk. It was a 10 bout-card. I lazily copied Sherdog.com's predictions and bet on Perez, Proctor, Sicilia, Jury, Cruickshank, Lawrence, Holloway, Brookins, Iaquinta and Ellenberger. The victors were: Perez, Proctor, Sicilia, Jury, Cruickshank, Lawrence, Holloway, Oliveira, Chiesa and Kampmann. Dang! "We" had seven outta seven for a moment there, then never improved. I still made a small profit. (That heading is me being ironic - a horrible slogan commonly appearing on T-shirts worn by horrible people.)

Friday, June 01, 2012

Colony collapse disorder

So I'm pushing 40 and, without really meaning to, I just accounted for three containers of Chinese takeaway* rather than my usual 1-2. Does this mean I'll be consuming four tubs in a sitting when I'm 50? Five tubs at 60? No. No, it does not. Because if three containers of C/t becomes a habit, I'll be lucky to reach 45.


*Half of which was supposed to be saved for tomorrow.

X-Entertainment ---> Dinosaur Dracula

http://dinosaurdracula.com/

If you're familiar with X-E, it's more of the same (thankfully).

If not, the piece on The Unicorn Killer is a good demonstration of MC's quirky subject matter and engaging writing style.