Red Elephant

Treasure Trove

Just got back from my grandparents' 60th wedding anniversary party at my parents' house. Man, what a day. It went a lot longer than I had anticipated, but it was their day, so I have no complaints. The food was good, the company was better, and the memories were amazing.

For starters, I found my grandparents' old 8mm projector and a whole bunch of old family home movies. And yes, they are movies and not videos. So, we sat back with the clickety-clack of an old projector, some golden oldies on the stereo, and watched some old films.

We started with some old vacation shots, trips to Minnesota, back before my parents were dating, to some places I've never been, much less heard of. Films of my mom, my uncle, their parents, and their dogs -- half Chihuauas. Pretty much a trip.

The real gems were the films of 'XMAS 1962,' my dad & uncle's state championship for baseball, and my mom's senior prom. The Christmas film was pretty amazing, as there were all sorts of great aunts & uncles, some of whom are dead. There was also footage of my great-grandpa Frank, who I've heard about but never really seen before.

Then there was seeing my mom as a teenager, and a prom queen no less, on a date with some guy who was not my father. My dad was on the same reel, as he was the same age as my uncle Joe, Mom's bro. There's mom in a prom dress with long white gloves. There's my dad at about fifteen or sixteen in a black suit with a skinny black tie. And there's my grandma with 60s glasses and a killer lavender dress.

It was really amazing. I've never been much for home movies, but then I never knew these existed. It's one thing to see pictures of your parents as kids, but another thing altogether to see them getting ready for dates, fishing, or playing ball. It was amazing to watch them as they saw people they hadn't seen in years, sometimes struggling for names, sometimes instantly transported as the faces reminded them of other stories.

I'd really like to restore these old films, maybe transfer them to DVD for the rest of the family. As for me, I'd rather keep the old school projector and make that part of the experience. There's something about the medium that has it's own charm.

Furthermore, my Aunt Karan -- dad's sister -- was reminded of some old films from her mom & dad, both of whom have passed on. She doesn't even know what was on them, and had no way to know until now. So, that's another exciting development.

And, for what it's worth, I hope to find the old camera and maybe shoot some footage myself. I never put much stock into home movies before. However, there is something about it, about knowing that your parents were once your age, that they were young & beautiful, that they partied hard in their own way.

And there's the simplicity of how it can bring back memories. I don't have any home videos from my childhood, not that I regret not having them. But I think there is something to be said for preserving. Not spending all your time trying to capture every memory, but for saving a choice few & letting time dictate what memories it will bring back.

Alien Bunnies

Thanks to Jill for the latest in the "Re-enacted in 30 seconds by bunnies" series. I give you, Alien.

Lego Spidey

I saw Spiderman 2 this weekend and was very pleased. While I don't have all the comic book savvy of Max or Christian, I read enough Spidey comics as a kid to appreciate the new movies. If it's painful to watch Peter Parker's geekiness, it's because it hits close to home in this geek's heart.

I also have a fondness for this lego interpretation of spiderman 2. I grew up building all kinds of moon bases, castles, and cities with my legos. God only knows what I would have done if I had thought to use our video camera to animate them.

Finally, I saw a sneak preview of Anchorman last night. I'm a big Will Ferrell fan, and have been since he was Mugatu in Zoolander. If you're a fan of his style of comedy, you'll be pleased. Plenty of cameos, and the rest of the cast is pretty amazing, too.

The Other

So, I know I put something up about Casshern, but I don't know if I ever gave props to Immortel. Got both of those from Coudal, a couple of months ago. The site for the latter didn't work for a while, so I shelved it rather than put up a dead link.

Reblogging

I've been in love with largeheartedboy, a music blog. So far, he's pointed me at all sorts of unreleased tracks that I've been trying to track down. Including the first two discs of towering above the rest complete, the holy grail of radiohead bootlegs, and the white stripes' peel sessions. I wish that was my job. Tracking down and listening to obscure tracks by my favorite artists.

Also enjoying I will buy you flowers, and the exorcist in 30 seconds renacted with bunnies

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Holy Crap

This film trailer for Casshern is the most compelling thing I've seen in quite a while. via Coudal

Animated

Tuesday night I had to finish up some exhibits for a trial we're in this week. I had to output & mount them on posterboard, so in the meantime I did a little cruising. I ended up watching a Doctor Who episode that was made specifically for the web.

I am quite the science fiction fan, and have special place in my heart for early Doctor Who, especially the Tom Baker years. I'm not enough of a fanatic about the series to say as to whether it's consistent with the later series, but I enjoyed it well enough.

I was more struck by the fact it was made exclusively for the web, and made in flash. It presupposes a fast connection [I can only imagine how long it would take to load the various parts using dial-up] and a certain amount of knowledge of the series. I think the story stands up pretty well on its own using fairly common elements -- nefarious aliens, the british military, end of the world scenario, and plot twists and turns.

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As always I'm interested in the web as a method of distribution, especially in the case of the BBC who plan to make their entire archives available for download.

I'm also interested in animation as a way of telling a storyline that is traditionally a live action series or movie. Specifically, I'm thinking about how Lucasfilm decided to allow Cartoon Network to produce Star Wars: Clone Wars. Another example is The Animatrix, which told alternate stories in the matrix universe. Some of the stories were released on the internet as teasers to generate interest in the DVD.

As a fan of animation and of these franchises [or at least the first Matrix film] I think it's a good thing. I like the difference in texture that animation provides, and the difference in the media. Granted, both the Matrix and Star Wars series are special effects extravaganzas that blur the lines of live action with CGI, but I think there are still different kinds of magic at work here. Different appeals.

Geek Holiday

Wednesday I went to see Return of the King with my friend Ian. I had the day off, but he took his final vacation day of the year to go see a movie. There was a line, and I imagine there was a certain amount of camping out across the world. Online ticket buying has probably lessened this phenomenon, but I imagine the die-hard fans were out there, braving the cold.

The last movie I saw on opening day might have been the re-release of Star Wars: Episode IV, when my friend Joe waited in line overnight to get us all tickets. People dressed up. Vader was in the house, as was luke. Some kids gave them their toy lightsabers and there was a battle on the balcony. When Vader's lightsaber went out [batteries?] and the crowd roared. The anticipation was thick in the air.

There's just something about these epics, these sci-fi and fantasy movies that draws people out. I mean, people don't stand in line for days to see the new Julia Roberts movie. [At least in my experience, maybe this is a phenom somewhere.] I think some of it is the escapism, that's something I've always enjoyed about Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, or even Star Trek.

There's something about sharing in with a community of like minds, a bit of an underground appeal, even though these are multi-million dollar franchises. There's always someone a bit geekier, who has the toys, the costume, the die-cast model, or who has read more books than you, etc. I think it's fun to share in these worlds, but I also like to be able to leave.

the new sins

"can any of you name the seven deadly sins? [silence] oh come on people! haven't you seen se7en? it's the ultimate cheat sheet!" - father brian finn [edward norton], keeping the faith

different little sins have been coming up in discussions lately. for example, does wanderlust fall under the deadly sins, or is it merely annoying. or just costly. road rage? could be deadly, but mostly it's just something to avoid by not driving. walk. take a train.

how's this for seven no-so's that i'm guilty of: binge-drinking, workaholism, slacking, double-booking, road rage, false humility, wanderlust

i believe that binge drinking [1] is defined as more than two or three drinks in one session, in which case all of my friends are lushes. [i think we all recognize this fact anyway] but we don't drive drunk. at least, we sober up with coffee, soda, water, what-have-you after drinking & before driving. that is also deadly. i guess i have a beef with cars today.

what else: workaholism [2]. i think that's the correct form if the -ism form of alcholic is alcoholism. [and where does grammar anal-retentiveness fall? hmm] i think i'm guilty of both workaholism & slacking [3], as separate ends of a continuum. rather, i flipflop between them like different sides of the coin. how productive is ben going to be today. heads? tails?

what about double-booking [4]? that's a pretty good one. i did that last night. i should cook my friends pad thai for that. oh wait, that's what we were going to do in the first place. guess i'll just have to owe them. i get upset when people break plans. i understand, but it feels bad. especially if they're blowing me off for someone else.

whoops. getting passive-agressive there. is that better than road rage? probably. road rage can be deadly. let's drop road-rage, and switch it to passive-agressiveness [5]. less of this in my life than there used to be. i know it still comes out like a reflex if i'm not careful. anymore, i try to be direct, speak my mind, and leave the little melodrama for my writing.

false humilty [6]. cure for this, especially if not you're not into stuart smalley style affirmations, is just to say thank you when someone does something nice for you or gives you a compliment. and mean it. [thanks to lauren for this lesson]

wanderlust [7] won't just go away. i have always wanted to travel the world, meet new & interesting people, and see new things. this world is just too big & rich to not want to. but, like with all these attributes, the thing that makes it a sin is the intention.

when i was younger, i couldn't wait to move away. i figured that not only was the grass greener, but so was the cement [i moved to the middle of washington d.c.], and that it would be loads better.

what i discovered was that it's not the place that makes you happy. it's not the people. it's your own attitude. now, i can leave omaha, come back, and be at home wherever i go. because it's a state of mind. d.c. is sometimes home. australia, too. lots of places i call home anymore. it's a good feeling. hardly a sin.

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just remembered that mcsweeney's published a book called the new sins by david byrne. need to read this. the packaging is lovely. sold out?! damnit!

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sorry, god