Virtual Flaneurism

This was my answer, too.

Epic 5 second film

It's all been sugared nuts and buttercups spending the last three posts relieving my perpetual blog-boner for all things literary and touchy-feely, but let's not forget what brought us here: cat videos and memes ridiculing hipsters. Also, may we not overlook our love of laughing at the unfortunately life-inept:

God, I could be sleeping but instead I am reveling in my long literary crush on Frank O'Hara. Ahoy, one of the few poems to ever make me laugh audibly:

New York Times has a terrific photo-article up entitled "Who Lives There: The Pyramid Atop Seattle's Smith Tower", which looks at the family who lives in a small glass lighthouse atop a nearly forty story tower in Washington. The photos are really worth a look at - I would love to live in a place like this.

Looking at the photos last night, I was immediately smitten with the home and found myself imagining the couple's path toward renting the space. I like to think that their decision to live there was one of those life moments where you initially dismiss an idea as absurd ("Live in a lighthouse atop an office building? Preposterous.") then this reasoning gives way to the realization that the idea is not actually absurd, nor impractical or impossible, and the prospect of doing whatever it is is actually incredibly exciting - an adventure if you will. The most universal example that comes to mind is that moment after a friend offhandedly invites you along on a trip and, after poo-pooing the idea, you realize it is possible for to go, that you really want to go, and finally, that you will go on the trip. It's the freedom of responsible spontaneity, if you will.

In some ways, I think that feeling may be one of my favorites.

Let's talk short fiction: Timothy McSweeney's website has a wickedly humorous collection of short (they'll take you five minutes each to read) imagined monologues. The monologues themselves are delightful, though I found myself laughing even more at the random titles. A few of my favorites (both in title and in substance):

"I Am the Invisible Thing That Holds Together the Two Halves of a Compound Word."
By Ben Greenman

"We Are Going to Turn This Fake Christmas Tree Into an Art Piece So I Don't Have to Haul it Down to the Basement Again."
By Lily Langerud

"A Father Tells His Eight-Month-Old Son to Scatter His Ashes On Top of All the Places That This Asshole He Knows From Work Is Going to Have His Ashes Scattered."
By Christopher Geno

"It Was I Who Flipped Over the Risk Board Last Night."
By Colin Nissan

This song came on my iPod today, and I was struck with a desire to check out the video. Little did I know that I was going to be diving head first into a Bridget Jonesesque hellsphere. Song's catchy, though.

Context

From Erin and Ben:

PS. XD @ the random Windows disk space menu shots

I adore this:

Moments ago I stumbled upon the Wikipedia entry for Black Swan Theory, a concept developed by Nassim-Nicholas Talleb to explain the human response to high impact, unexpected random events (the "appearance" of a "black swan"). The most common cultural response to such events, he claims, is to retroactively and incorrectly reinterpret their occurrence - which he claims is rare and random - as having been predictable. I find this absolutely fascinating. Tallib also concocted a list of ten principles that, if followed, will allow a societal unit to most efficiently weather "Black Swan events".

This theory makes sense to me just examining one of our most recent American tragedies: the terrorist attacks occurring on September 11th. To most of us, these attacks seemed to come out of nowhere - a majority of Americans considered attacks on American soil unimaginable. On September 12th, not only was this belief proven false, but belief in our omnipotence seemed naive - America was of course susceptible to attack, and we "should" and "could" have known that an attack was coming.

The consequences of upturning an ideology is what I find particularly intriguing about Talleb's theory. The American response to finding out we are not untouchable has been unfortunately extreme: anti-Islamic sentiment is at a high, the travel industry functions at a paranoid near standstill, and we are led to feel constantly in danger despite the fact that September 11th was nearly ten years ago. By believing we could have predicted 9/11, we have stereotyped Muslims as dangerous, airlines as unsafe, and our world as constantly under threat. Talleb contends that societal responses to Black Swan events are generally this hyperbolic and destructive and should be avoided if possible.

The theory's argument is not that we can avoid events from occurring, but prepare our society not to view them as earth-shattering and requiring some sort of (unrealistic) rationalization - we can keep them as "White Swans", rather than "Black". The "White Swan" here would simply have been one of expectations: not that we expected to be attacked, but that we fathomed it possible. I'd argue that entertaining the possibility of attack could have prevented this horrible tragedy from being a leaping off point by which some Americans have tried to vilify the entire Muslim world. I'd also argue that Americans in a "White Swan" mindset might be those who are more rational about and receptive to the possibility of a mosque being built in lower Manhattan.

Anyway, I'd like to read the book, if nothing else. Feel free to disagree in the comments, or make fun of me for pretending to understand an entire theory of human behavior simply from reading a Wikipedia page.

Also, chastize away if this post has TOO MUCH GOD DAMN TEXT.

W, on some of what he misses about being President:

"Bush said he misses certain aspects of the presidency. 'I miss being pampered; I miss Air Force One; I miss being commander in chief of an awesome group of [people],' he said."

Keeping it classy, Georgie.

This just makes me want to watch the A-List even more. Getting LOGO on basic cable is the next big LGBT issue...you know, after we wrap up all this marriage stuff.

If you don't want to watch this video, let me summarize: White boy in a Cosby Sweater buys too much yogurt and seduces tramped out Jersey girls.

Keep living the dream, man!

I won't even pretend to have watched this in its entirety, but my kanye-dar is telling me the media is going to decide this is "important" and "revolutionary" or whatever bullshit term they're dropping today to stroke Kanye's massive ego, and you might as well just watch it and not be that loser at the party or the water cooler or wherever it is that an asshole usually quizzes you about the latest rap videos.

Is this kitten rocking a satchel on its right side? Add a miniature Steve Zissou hat and this cat may be the hipster god.

Last night I went to a Guster concert. I was particularly excited because Guster is the last of my favorite bands that I had yet to see in concert. Luckily, they did not disappoint - the show was terrific. Seldom do I get to go to a concert where I can sing along with every song on the set list.

They also dropped a new album two weeks ago, and this is the leading single. The album is pretty peppy, and I can feel strong classic rock influences. This song smacks me as a throwback to the Loving Spoonful. If you don't like semi-bubble gum pop, this probably isn't the tune for you.

Hurry yourself on over to this web site that transforms your keyboard into a Daft Punk-themed drum kit.

I'm chugging out a ditty based on a little V-N-M-B, repeated. Working title: "Oh, regret."