goodbye childhood pt. 501

By now I'm sure that everyone knows of the passing of at least Patrick Swayze (far right) and Mary Travers (middle) of Peter, Paul, and Mary; I'm posting this more for myself than to be informative. The fellow on the far left is Henry Gibson who died on Monday. You may or may not know the name but odds are he looks familiar. He was in a ton of shows and movies (Laugh-In, Wedding Crashers, Nashville and the voice of Wilbur in Charlotte's Web to name a few) over the last several decades; for some reason I had in my head that he was also Teller's (of Penn & Teller) real life dad. O--kay...

At this point it is starting to feel like a regular thing to bid adieu to a celebrity, but I wanted to make a special point to recognize this trio. Each one in their own way played a part in my memories of youth... whether it was making friends with a familiar and reoccurring face on T.V., hearing certain songs (to say my parents loved Peter, Paul, and Mary is an understatement), or witnessing the birth of a well-coiffed superstar has he subtly live a role(s) others would have certainly hammed up given the same material. Thanks for everything; you will be missed.

[ Photo credits from l-r Roadsidepictures, Getty Images via Soundunwound, ??? but I will add if someone knows ]

best of the bets

Clearly I am a lover of type and love getting in touch with my inner child. Here are some of my favorite alphabets that have been making their way through the internet.
Alphabeasties [ Werner Design ]



Alphabet in Progress? [ Haasbrokek ]



Alpha Prints [ Paul Thurlby ]

giffing her options

I like Kathryn's (don't know her last name) method for finding the right pair of glasses.

nerd boyfriend

The other day I accidentally stumbled upon the site Nerd Boyfriend, a "shopping guide and style blog for the fashionably nerdy male". I don't even remember what I initially was looking for and I'm pretty sure it was something completely unrelated (way to go Google). Anyway, I have no doubt that I have yet again discovered something unearthed by many others long ago, and while I don't make a habit of bookmarking men's clothing I really like the photos they use and the way they find corresponding outfits (do men say "outfit"?).

[ photo credit ??? ]

need to want less: you

Rainer Elstermann

German photographer Rainer Elstermann is wunderbar. Do I even need to explain why.

back to the stax

I have recently reacquainted myself with my Fuji Instax camera. Luckily there is a place in town that is selling the film (for now) and in the wake of Polaroid's scarceness I am happy to court the best alternative. When I first got this camera I was not exactly gung-ho -- yes there was fondness, but it was drool-less -- however now I am seeing it in a different light and like the view. Not sure what has changed in my mind, but I am really appreciating the format and the vivid colors.

chalk chalk, yes yes

Sharon Montrose is a photographer that I absolutely adore. Her photos, namely the ones that focus on animal-kingdom-as-models, are sweet, simple, and breathtakingly exquisite. Aside from following her work for awhile I have also been a fan of her blog, which features her latest and greatest, but also at one point offered a "Monday on the Chalkboard" feature. This recurring post centered on musings, updates, conversations, drawings, and/or artwork that was strewn over/affixed to her home's dining room chalkboard . A particular favorite were the bicycle illustrations done by her husband, which amazingly have been translated to prints that are being sold in their very own Etsy shop.

Chalk Chalk features wheeled, human powered transportation devices (bicycles, tricycles, wagons, etc.) drawn in chalk.

Chalk Chalk offers original pieces and open edition prints made from the original pieces.

Chalk Chalk originals are handcrafted chalkboards measuring 8"x8"x.75,"and are constructed from fifteen ply baltic birch. Many layers of chalkboard paint are applied, sanded, and buffed to a smooth slate texture. Drawings are then sealed with acrylic fixatif. A keyhole mount is provided on the back for hanging.

top doppleganger

God bless the internet for being better than it was this time last year. Being cable-less I am able to watch Top Chef online almost instantly. I now watch far less TV than I used to (which doesn't mean I have narrowed down my viewing to high quality shows) and have the added pleasure of the hunt, finding my favorites in weird random corners of the world wide web.

Top Chef has been one of my must watch shows since it began six years ago and this season, chef Bryan Voltaggio has caught my interest. This is not because of his cooking skills, but because I can not for the life of me look at him without thinking of Barry Tubb (oh, come on... BARRY... TUBB... wait, who?) from Top Gun. Why I remember that guy beats the heck out of me, but there IS a resemblance yeah? Yes, and don't tell me otherwise.

P.S. My vote for is for Kevin.

the happiest day of my life

... is today, because... whoa. And yes!

In the 1980s video cassette technology made it possible for “mobile cinema” operators in Ghana to travel from town to town and village to village creating temporary cinemas. The touring film group would create a theatre by hooking up a TV and VCR onto a portable generator and playing the films for the people to see.

In order to promote these showings, artists were hired to paint large posters of the films (usually on used canvas flour sacks). The artists were given the artistic freedom to paint the posters as they desired - often adding elements that weren’t in the actual films, or without even having seen the movies. When the posters were finished they were rolled up and taken on the road (note the heavy damages). The “mobile cinema” began to decline in the mid-nineties due to greater availability of television and video; as a result the painted film posters were substituted for less interesting/artistic posters produced on photocopied paper.

There are more, SO MANY more treasures on Ephemera Assemblyman. You shouldn't even be reading this anymore... go on, get!