Flicker

Somewhere during Celine Dion's performance I lost all interest of watching the Oscars. Somehow the glitz and glamour of huge white snowflakes coating downtown New York was more captivating than guessing what movies were in the montages (and which ones should have been) or watching painted faces smile forcefully at the camera... I opened the window and looked out across the stillness and silence... through the white haze noticed dozens of lights flickering the same colors at the same time in separate apartments, in fact in apartments hundreds of yards away from each other... In the window below, across the street, over in the penthouse, behind semi-transparent curtains, off the faces sitting on couches... all illuminated by the broadcast of the Academy Awards. Each television a vessel, an escape, a dream. There is a reason Hollywood is massive. There is a reason we dedicate ourselves to telling these stories... the ones in black box theaters, the ones on silver screens, the ones inside virtual characters... it wasn't the Oscars that everyone was watching... sure they watch the popularity contest, but in the end, we, the reflection, are watching them... looking out and wondering - do you feel like I do? can we laugh together? will you hear what I'm saying?... am I saying anything at all?... We are always saying something. Even when we're silent. I especially enjoy the kind indicating Celine's performance is over.

Academy Awards....

I am terrible at predicting who will actually win at the Oscars. Ultimately, it's just an over-hyped popularity contest... But here is whom I would WANT to win...

Performance by an actor in a leading role: Ryan Gosling
Performance by an actor in a supporting role: Jackie Earle Haley
Performance by an actress in a leading role: Kate Winslet
Best animated feature film of the year: Cars
Achievement in art direction: Pan’s Labyrinth
Achievement in cinematography: Children of Men
Achievement in costume design: The Queen
Achievement in directing: The Departed
Best documentary feature: Jesus Camp
Achievement in film editing: Babel
Original Score: Pan's Labyrinth
Best motion picture of the year: Babel
Best live action short film: Binta and the Great Idea (Binta Y La Gran Idea)
Achievement in visual effects: Pirates of the Caribbean
Original Screenplay: Babel
Adapted Screenplay: Borat

Why I love New York

This is just around the corner from me... Yum! indeed!

Feb. 23 (Bloomberg) -- Yum! Brands Inc. said a KFC/Taco Bell
restaurant in New York City 's Greenwich Village that was infested
with rats this morning will stay closed until the pests are gone.
Rats could be seen running, playing and eating scraps off
the floor of the restaurant at Sixth Avenue and West Fourth
Street, which closed for business at 11 p.m. yesterday, WCBS-TV
reported.

Quote...

To conquer fear is the beginning of wisdom.
Bertrand Russell

L.A.S.E.R. Tag!

Look closesly at the building below...
See the "graffiti"?!? Lasers that let you non-permanently graffiti the entire side of a twenty story building instantaneously... brilliant. The video is even better:
http://graffitiresearchlab.com/?page_id=76#video

Save the Strand!

http://www.friendsofthestrand.com

My father forwarded this to me - The Strand is a theatre we saw sit empty (and I secretly always dreamed of owning so I could put on the most amazing and theatrical shows that the sleepy Square had ever seen!) throughout my childhood. Now they're looking to raise the final amount remaining from the $2.3 million to begin (re)construction by March 1, 2007, and a total of $4.5 million...

I wonder what the sound system was like?

I find this old picture funny actually because I always remembered Marietta as having a bit of religious over-zealousness in it. Especially after the uproar that followed a reading of Terrance McNally's "Lips Together, Teeth Apart"...

Behavioral Existentialism

What were all those things in life we said we'd never do? Smoke cigarettes? Live in New York? Drive over the speed limit (well, maybe not double the limit)? Owe anyone more than a penny? Turn a blind eye to a needing hand?

And what happened? Did you walk too far on the wild side? Is that as much a risk as letting everyone else take the risks for you? We take our sides and look at the beasts across from us - what were they thinking? How could they?!? Maybe more importantly - WHY?!?!

Would we really want to know? To paint life with a specific palette and act on instincts is natural. To appreciate the works of art that we do not agree with nearly impossible. Behavioral Existentialism. Raw. Pure. We are firmly aligned having set our life forward to support, defend, and justify our choices in life.

And when you did what you said you'd never do... how did it get to that point? The need. The excuse. In the end, justification needs no justification.
We move forward.
Look back?
Evaluate?
How did it turn out - were the consequences what you thought they'd be? Are you a better person because of it. Are you proud of the things you've done. The way you've treated people - the list of things you did or didn't do? New Years Resolutions don't count. Noticing the way your best friend laughs does. And is that something you can justify?

Luckiest Pig Year in 600 years?

Lucky indeed! ...that I looked up all these fascinating cultural-isms so we know what to expect in the coming year and can abide by formalities that further our chances of a successful year... imagine if you did not know these...!

Other New Years beliefs/rituals include:
- Pay off all debts before the holiday to avoid a negative start
- Lending is considered bad luck on New Years Day as is Crying -- if you do any of the those things, you'll do them for the rest of the year.
- On New Years day, people give out red paper packets called "hong baos" which are normally filled with crisp notes in sums that do not comprise the number four, because Chinese for four sounds like Chinese for death. The number eight, however, is lucky.

For this year in particular:
- South Korean fortune tellers predict this could be the luckiest pig year in 600 years!
- Babies born in the Year of the Pig are particulary lucky
- According to tradition, this is not a good year for weddings
- This year is especially unlucky for people aged 29
- The pig is the 12th animal in the Chinese zodiac and anyone whose age is a multiple of 12 should put a small electric light in a temple for protection and be mindful of accidents
- It is also advised that people to put a strip of yellow paper with red lettering in the living room during the pig and snake years as a tribute to two gods and pray quietly.
But the piece of paper, about the size of an average bookmark, should not face the toilet.

Whew! Note to self: do not to pray to the Pig and Snake Gods while on the pot!

Happy New Year!

Gung Hei Fat Choi!
Happy Chinese New Year - the year of the Pig is upon us!

In China, this is also known as the Year of the Boar....
According to legend, the nian, a man-eating beast from the mountains, could silently infiltrate houses to prey on humans. The people later learned that the nian was sensitive to loud noises and the color red, so they scared it away with explosions, fireworks and the liberal use of the color red. These customs led to the first New Year celebrations. Guò nián, which means to celebrate the new year, literally means the passing of the nian beast.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chinese_New_Year

The Chinese Calendar moves in 60-year cycles, meaning the world will experience in the new year events similar to those that took place in 1947.

In that turbulent year, the Cold War began in earnest when then US president Truman declared his anti-communist doctrine and the Soviet Union rejected a US plan for atomic weapons control, sparking the nuclear arms race.

More predictions at:
http://www.breitbart.com/news/2007/02/14/070215043912.onjqts5b.html

And a List of TOP TEN LIST FOR YEAR OF THE FIRE PIG!

http://www.firepig.com/firepigmagdetail.aspx?ArticleID=312

Tonight I'll be putting on my brightest Red and heading down to Columbus Park for the celebratory fireworks that will usher in the fifteen days of the lunar new year... followed by a fantastic feast - as many people as possible fitting around a table crammed full of food... reminds me of Hong Kong. I do miss Hong Kong.

Weather Update...

Last time I did this on a blog it was for a typhoon... bit different this time around...

NEW YORK (MANHATTAN)-BRONX-RICHMOND (STATEN ISLAND)- KINGS (BROOKLYN)- QUEENS- 415 AM EST WED FEB 14 2007

...WIND CHILLS AT OR BELOW ZERO EXPECTED TONIGHT AND THURSDAY NIGHT...
WITH THE PASSAGE OF THE FIRST SIGNIFICANT WINTER STORM OF THE SEASON...BITTERLY COLD TEMPERATURES ALONG WITH STRONG WINDS WILL RETURN TO THE AREA. WINDS TONIGHT WILL BE INCREASING TO 25 TO 35 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 50 MPH. COMBINED WITH OVERNIGHT LOWS IN THE MID TEENS...THIS WILL CREATE WIND CHILL VALUES RANGING FROM ZERO TO 5 BELOW ZERO THROUGHOUT NEW YORK CITY. THOUGH WINDS DIMINISH TO 10 TO 20 MPH WITH GUSTS UP TO 30 MPH THURSDAY NIGHT...OVERNIGHT LOWS IN THE LOWER TEENS WILL ONCE AGAIN CREATE WIND CHILL VALUES FROM ZERO TO 5 BELOW THROUGHOUT NEW YORK CITY.

EXPOSURE TO COLD CAN CAUSE LIFE THREATENING HEALTH CONDITIONS. AVOID SERIOUS CONDITIONS SUCH AS FROSTBITE AND HYPOTHERMIA BY KEEPING WARM. IF YOU MUST GO OUTSIDE...WEAR LAYERED CLOTHING... MITTENS OR GLOVES...AND A HAT. COVER YOUR MOUTH TO PROTECT YOUR LUNGS FROM EXTREMELY COLD AIR. STAY DRY AND CHANGE WET CLOTHING TO PREVENT LOSS OF BODY HEAT. AVOID BEVERAGES CONTAINING ALCOHOL AND CAFFEINE...AS THEY HASTEN THE EFFECTS OF COLD ON THE BODY. IF YOU OR A PERSON YOU SUSPECT IS SUFFERING FROM FROSTBITE OR HYPOTHERMIA...SEEK MEDICAL HELP IMMEDIATELY OR CALL 911.

Loving It

Valentine’s Day 2007 and the snow finally decides to wrap itself around New York City and give the rest of us a reason to wrap ourselves in a bit of love for the Hallmark Holiday. And I have no problems that I have no plans tonight… except to get home from work and watch the world turn white from my window, which I find to be special enough to take a night off from hour-long phone meetings and planning sessions that keep me busy until at least 11pm. More on this madness later... for now remember that “Love that is not madness is not love.”

New Time added at Zion Film Fest

Bystander picked up an extra show time at the Zion Film Festival! It will now be showing:

SAT, FEB 24, 4:30pm • FLANIGANS INN
SAT, FEB 24, 8:30pm • FLANIGANS INN

Check out their synopsis!

DUMP Bank of "America"

This infuriates me and if I still had a BofA account, I'd change banks immediately...

BofA aims new credit card at illegal immigrants: report
Tue Feb 13, 2007 12:35am ET
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bank of America Corp. has begun offering credit cards to customers without Social Security numbers, typically illegal immigrants, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

In recent years, banks across the country have been offering checking accounts and even mortgages to the nation's fast-growing ranks of undocumented immigrants, most of whom are Hispanic, the paper said, adding these immigrants generally have not been able to get major credit cards.

The new Bank of America card is open to people who lack both a Social Security number and a credit history, as long as they have held a checking account with the bank for three months without an overdraft, the Journal said.

Bank of America tested the program last year at five branches in Los Angeles, and last week expanded it to 51 branches in Los Angeles County, home to the largest concentration of illegal immigrants in the U.S., the Journal said.

The bank hopes to roll out the program nationally later this year, the paper said.
A Bank of America spokesman was not immediately available to comment

Missed Sundance? Go to Utah Anyways!

BYSTANDER has been accepted into the Zion Indpendent 
Film Festival! It is currently scheduled to play in the
Shorts Program at 2:30 PM in Springdale, Utah on
Saturday February 24th. Congratulations again to all of
the dedicated filmmakers and supportive friends and family
of BYSTANDER!

Short Stories...

Beginning. Middle. End.
Easy enough, right?
Ok. How about in five minutes or less.

Sounds easy enough, no? 30 second commercials. One-page magazine advertisements. News headlines. Common cliche. It's not as easy as it seems.

Consider: Nabokov's short stories still take at least 40 minutes just to read. Newspaper clippings that take five minutes are only snapshots of life, not stories. In a conversation it usually takes someone more than five minutes to recount a story.

Tonight's mission has been: what story can you tell in 300 seconds...
Mission: Impossible?

Quick Pics

...from when James' cousin Sophie was in town...

Out with the girls... Sophie is third from the right and the girl next to me studied business at CMU and actually had a class with one of my favorite professors, Geoffrey Hitch. Who knew business grads had a bit of drama in them?















With Ken Kwalik, an old CMU friend who has been a one-stop welcoming committee to New York since I've arrived. We're at the top of the Gansevoort here I believe...

CUPID ON DEMAND!

If you don't already have plans for tonight, I'm going to be managing this fundraising auction (details below)... they've got some sweet items to bid on and it should be a fun night... or even just the start to a good evening ;-)

Cupid On Demand II:
Love For Sale

Critically acclaimed songwriters “auctioned off”
at hip Pre-Valentine’s Bash
and Stunning silent auction items available to bid on!

Saturday, February 3rd, 6-9pm

Songwriter’s Auction at 7pm

Mannahatta (316 Bowery, at Bleeker)

New Sounds Theatre and Beth Morrison Projects host the second annual Cupid On Demand, a “Pre-V-day” Party featuring a Songwriter’s Auction, where partiers have the chance to buy a customized love song – for a sweetheart, a crush, or even an ex. Five talented songwriters will be put up for sale, and given one hour to write personalized love songs for the highest bidders…to be performed and recorded that night! Writers include pop songstress Greta Gertler, underground rocker Richard X Heyman, hip-hop maestro W Ellington Felton, Off-Broadway composers Peter Hilliard and Matt Boresi (Don Imbroglio), and cabaret parodists Lisa Neubauer and Andrew Byrne. The auction begins at 7pm .

The party offers plenty of other opportunities for fun and mischief, for singles and couples alike…send a singing "Crush-O-Gram", bid on fabulous silent auction prizes (SEE BELOW!), swoon to the stylings of vocalist/ songwriter Sachal Vasandani, and lose yourself in the groove with jazzy progressive dance music from DJ Dub Ell and pianist Will Rast.

Admission is $15 in advance or $20 at the door (and includes one free drink). Proceeds go toward the upcoming production of The Don Giovanni Radio Hour, a new musical being presented this May by New Sounds Theatre and Beth Morrison Projects.

Purchase tickets at www.newsoundstheatre.org

DID WE MENTION OUR SILENT AUCTION?

We've got thousands of dollars worth of amazing merchandise and experiences (just in time for those last-minute Valentines gifts)! Here's just a few of the amazing items up for sale...

Miracle Date #2: A Night at the Opera
(one of 6 complete dates!)
Enjoy a gourmet meal at the award-winning Cafe Gray, followed by a night of glorious music at the New York City Opera. Top it off with a bottle of fine wine from the Caparone winery.

Dinner for 2 at Megu
Dine at one of New York's most esteemed, exclusive, and delicious Modern Japanese restaurants (over 10 meals available from other award-winning restaurants)!

BAM Tickets
Attend any show of your choice at the world-famous Brooklyn Academy of Music!

Health/Beauty Super-Pack
Look and feel great with a 3-month ladies-only gym membership at Fitness Express, a private yoga session with certified instructor Marissa Nielsen-Pincus, and a haircut at celebrity barber Richard Stein's hair salon.

Original Artwork
Take home the marvelous work of acclaimed contemporary artist Kevin Berlin, whose work can be found in the collections of Luciano Pavarotti, David Letterman, and Senator Hilary Rodham Clinton.

Designer Belts and Bags
Accessorize in style with 3 exotic belts and a calf skin anchor bag from innovative designer Bliss Lau.

AND MUCH MORE!!
For a complete list, visit http://www.newsoundstheatre.org/html/silentauction.html