Archive for November, 2009

Espresso Guy: Holiday Gift Guide

November 28th, 2009

My other site, Espresso Guy, now has the Holiday Gift Guide back online.

This is the gift guide for the coffee lover(s) in your life. It covers espresso, drip coffee, Turkish coffee, and press pot (french press) coffee. Do check it out today, won’t you?

Food Not Bombs punk show at 16th and Mission Bart plaza

November 13th, 2009

Once again, I got off Bart and found a punk show! Today’s show was somehow part of Food Not Bombs, and the bands came all the way from Brooklyn(!) for the show.

Can’t say I know who these bands were. After the first couple songs I was so deaf I really couldn’t hear them announce their names.

This guy seemed to be involved in the organization of the show. He announced that he turned 72 today and he’s still “punk as fuck.”

The crowd.
The crowd

First band.
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Second band.
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Full set is here.

Trippy Sesame Street: part 2

November 12th, 2009

This is the second part in my look back at exceptionally trippy Sesame Street animated segments. As always, if you have a suggestion for this series feel free to contact me.
See part 1 here.

On to the videos!
 

A Loaf of Bread, A Container of Milk, and a Stick of Butter
Here’s a video that shouldn’t be trippy, but the strange animation style makes it a real head-trip.

 

Carrots
Carrots: delicious, loud, and they’ll get you mugged. Warning: the narrators voice may be a buzzkill.

 

Daddy Dear
Oh my, where to begin with this one? Anthropomorphic animals, a “daughter” that’s actually a doll, tadpoles with human feet… at least the song is catchy.

 

Perspective
There’s probably better ways to teach kids about perspective than to blow their minds.

And last but not least…

The Pinball Song (music by The Pointer Sisters)
What if you got really high while watching Yellow Submarine, stared at a clock for a few hours, then went to play pinball? You could find out the hard way, or you could just watch this video because the good folks at CTW did it for you.
There’s several versions of this video, this is the “twelve” version.

 
This is Part 2 in my series on trippy Sesame Street animations. Part 1 is here. Is there a video you think I should include in the next installment? Contact me (e-mail is in the right margin.)

Trippy Sesame Street: part 1

November 4th, 2009

Sesame Street was created in the late 60’s and takes place in a zero-crime urban area where giant birds and talking monsters are normal. Even by those standards, some of the animated segments shown on Sesame Street in those early days are mind-bogglingly trippy.

Let’s explore, shall we?

Lost Boy Remembers His Way Home
How this kid managed to get lost after biking in a straight line for five minutes is beyond me, but the truly strange thing here is they’re teaching children that listening to shape-shifting pimps is a good idea.

 

The Geometry of Circles (must by Philip Glass)
As far as I can tell, there’s no educational content to this video. The animators got a box of paint, a compass, and a ruler and ate a bunch of shrooms. The music makes the whole thing inexplicably creepy.

 

1 to 20
Maybe this would seem less crazy in Hindi?

 

My Martian Cutie
Just trying to wrap one’s head around this one has been known to induce a hallucinogenic state. Don’t think about it for too long.

 

Madrigal Alphabet
I’ve always found this one strangely hypnotic. Watching this might help you sober up and take a nap.

 

That’s all for now, bye everyone! (This post was brought to you by the letter E and the number 9.)

This is Part 1 in my series on trippy Sesame Street animations. Part 2 is online here. Is there a video you think I should include in the next installment? Contact me (e-mail is in the right margin.)