But after how Halloween and Thanksgiving went, it's time to be pickier about only the most tasty. I think this would suffice!
A Prada Pastiche
13 years ago
07 December 2009
28 November 2009
22 November 2009
16 November 2009
we are nowhere
Probably going to post a lot more inspiration now, because I'm too busy to keep up with much else, but winter break is fast approaching!
27 August 2009
Summer is Ending
Summer is ending, but the book project isn't. There is just very little time...guess I should get on that.
Here's a pretty diversion!
Protected under CC license (attribution, no derivatives)
I shot this photo while vacationing in Michigan, and since it spoke to me, I gave it words. You can also check out similar photos on my Flickr photostream.
Here's another pretty diversion:
In Praise of My Sister
by Wisława Szymborska
My sister does not write poems
and it's unlikely she'll suddenly start writing poems.
She takes after her mother, who did not write poems,
and after her father, who also did not write poems.
Under my sister's roof I feel safe:
nothing would move my sister's husband to write poems.
And though it sounds like a poem by Adam Macedonski,
none of my relatives is engaged in the writing of poems.
In my sister's desk there are no old poems
nor any new ones in her handbag.
And when my sister invites me to dinner,
I know she has no intention of reading me poems.
She makes superb soups without half trying,
and her coffee does not spill on manuscripts.
In many families no one writes poems,
but when they do, it's seldom just one person.
Sometimes poetry flows in cascades of generations,
which sets up fearsome eddies in family relations.
My sister cultivates a decent spoken prose,
her entire literary output is on vacation postcards
that promise the same thing every year:
that when she returns,
she'll tell us, everything,
everything,
everything.
Here's a pretty diversion!
Protected under CC license (attribution, no derivatives)
Here's another pretty diversion:
In Praise of My Sister
by Wisława Szymborska
My sister does not write poems
and it's unlikely she'll suddenly start writing poems.
She takes after her mother, who did not write poems,
and after her father, who also did not write poems.
Under my sister's roof I feel safe:
nothing would move my sister's husband to write poems.
And though it sounds like a poem by Adam Macedonski,
none of my relatives is engaged in the writing of poems.
In my sister's desk there are no old poems
nor any new ones in her handbag.
And when my sister invites me to dinner,
I know she has no intention of reading me poems.
She makes superb soups without half trying,
and her coffee does not spill on manuscripts.
In many families no one writes poems,
but when they do, it's seldom just one person.
Sometimes poetry flows in cascades of generations,
which sets up fearsome eddies in family relations.
My sister cultivates a decent spoken prose,
her entire literary output is on vacation postcards
that promise the same thing every year:
that when she returns,
she'll tell us, everything,
everything,
everything.
17 July 2009
Big (Book) Pimpin'
From the publisher Simon and Schuster, who have published over a hundred bestselling books, the newest soon-to-be American classic is sadly out of stock on Amazon:
Pimpology: The 48 Laws of the Game by Pimpin' Ken and contributed to by Karen Hunter (a name you may recognize from her Confessions of a Video Vixen).
As the title says, there are 48 laws in Pimpin' Ken's version of "the Game," and naturally they are all incredibly poignant. Some of my favorites are:
Law 6: When Pimpin' Begins, Friendship Ends
Law 13: Pimp Like You're Ho-Less
Law 17: Get You a Bottom Bitch
Law 21: A Ho Without Instruction Is Headed for Self-Destruction
Law 32: Turn a Tramp Into a Champ
Pimpin' Ken opens with the moving insight: "There are only two categories of people: pimps and hoes."
Taking advantage of my place in the book publishing industry, I did a little search on how this book is doing since it's release, and it's not bad. Since releasing in 2008, there have been 2,718 copies sold. Without much surprise, the majority of sales come from the South and Pacific regions of the United States, but what did catch me off guard was the suburban-heavy sales overall. Pimpin' Ken's theory about us all being pimps or hoes does account for the need to read this book from the 'burbs. Ken teaches us, "When you go downtown and see an old lady feeding a bird, the bird comes every day to check the lady for that bread, and the old lady chooses to come every day to be down with the bird--even that bird is pimpin'!"
Though this text is currently (but understandably) out of stock on Amazon, you can find used copies from $46.21 - $216.33. Seriously. The second most expensive, $209.28, is only listed as "good" condition.
Why so much more than the list price? Well, readers have a hard time parting with their own copies of Pimpology.
Pamela P. "Pamela" gave this stunning review on Amazon: "I like the fact that the 48 laws can be applied to ones daily life as well as business endeavors. And, surprisingly, I found this book to be just as inspirational as some of Donald Trumps books."
There you have it. The Great American Pimp Book. Pimpin' laws to live by. Luckily it's only 3.2 ounces, in case any hoes get out of line and need the book thrown at them.
Pimpology: The 48 Laws of the Game by Pimpin' Ken and contributed to by Karen Hunter (a name you may recognize from her Confessions of a Video Vixen).
As the title says, there are 48 laws in Pimpin' Ken's version of "the Game," and naturally they are all incredibly poignant. Some of my favorites are:
Law 6: When Pimpin' Begins, Friendship Ends
Law 13: Pimp Like You're Ho-Less
Law 17: Get You a Bottom Bitch
Law 21: A Ho Without Instruction Is Headed for Self-Destruction
Law 32: Turn a Tramp Into a Champ
Pimpin' Ken opens with the moving insight: "There are only two categories of people: pimps and hoes."
Taking advantage of my place in the book publishing industry, I did a little search on how this book is doing since it's release, and it's not bad. Since releasing in 2008, there have been 2,718 copies sold. Without much surprise, the majority of sales come from the South and Pacific regions of the United States, but what did catch me off guard was the suburban-heavy sales overall. Pimpin' Ken's theory about us all being pimps or hoes does account for the need to read this book from the 'burbs. Ken teaches us, "When you go downtown and see an old lady feeding a bird, the bird comes every day to check the lady for that bread, and the old lady chooses to come every day to be down with the bird--even that bird is pimpin'!"
Though this text is currently (but understandably) out of stock on Amazon, you can find used copies from $46.21 - $216.33. Seriously. The second most expensive, $209.28, is only listed as "good" condition.
Why so much more than the list price? Well, readers have a hard time parting with their own copies of Pimpology.
Pamela P. "Pamela" gave this stunning review on Amazon: "I like the fact that the 48 laws can be applied to ones daily life as well as business endeavors. And, surprisingly, I found this book to be just as inspirational as some of Donald Trumps books."
There you have it. The Great American Pimp Book. Pimpin' laws to live by. Luckily it's only 3.2 ounces, in case any hoes get out of line and need the book thrown at them.
15 July 2009
Feature: Howard's Books
Though total book sales were up 1% in 2008 (for a total of $40.3 billion in the United States), big book chains were down (as much as 11.5% for Borders). More customers are turning to online media and Amazon while the bookstores are hurting. The solution? Border's new strategy is to eliminate some of its multimedia to make more space for actual books. More importantly, they are also making room for personal interaction and hands-on book sales.
As Borders struggles to reground themselves in their bookselling roots (the original Borders was a sizeable used bookstore to satisfy the academic community of Ann Arbor, MI) there's definitely something to be said for the traditional, able-to-give-a-good-recommendation-bookstore, but the local shops are hurting, too.
That's why I made my first stop on the path to Chicago independent bookseller nirvana at Howard's Books (2000 Maple Avenue, Evanston). The going-out-of-business signs have been up for a while, with their accompanying 50% off posters, but weren't enough to tempt me out of my busy schedule until now.
*Note: I've noticed that the signs about going out of business are now taken down, though the 50% off ones remain, so it's unclear what will be the future of Howard's Books*
Report and Review:
The actual state of the bookstore is hard to comment on, since it's clear once you're inside that this place is in transition. Whether or not it has always been like this--scattered, a bit disorganized--is impossible to tell. There is a special section for rarer finds, which are my favorite to look at, but less often to purchase (since paying well over the list price is not an easy thing to do when the book is very old and sometimes not in great condition, and rare books sometimes evoke an emotional investment that makes them impossible to turn down). Still, those purchases are the most gratifying and make every booklover's shelf (and soul) more complete. I once found an old, illustrated edition of Les Misérables in Poland that is near and dear to my heart. Nothing in the rare section of Howard's intrigued me, though I considered a 19th century Printer's Guide for a while out of my nostalgic connection to the book creation process. Some of the books are overpriced in my opinion, though the half-off sale makes cost a moot point.
Acquisitions:
Wicked Spanish by Howard Tomb (Workman Publishing Company, 1991) just for kicks since I'm taking Spanish 101 next quarter and I knew my Mexican-American roommate would laugh at it (and me); $2.50 (before the 50%).
Watchword by William Fuller (Flood Editions, 2006), inscribed with "it must be complete to be true" and the author's signature; $7.95 (again before the discount).
Recommendation:
This entire feature is more of an epitaph than a review, as Howard's Books won't be around much longer (see Note); I did overhear, however, that the owner plans to continue selling select books online, where I learned from their site that the 50% off is a continual treat for any book that has been in the store over a year. That's the sort of deal I like to hear. These guys keep a variety, as well as the intent to continually add more titles to their inventory for online sale so check them out for that book you're looking for but just haven't found yet--or to stumble across something interesting like I did.
As Borders struggles to reground themselves in their bookselling roots (the original Borders was a sizeable used bookstore to satisfy the academic community of Ann Arbor, MI) there's definitely something to be said for the traditional, able-to-give-a-good-recommendation-bookstore, but the local shops are hurting, too.
That's why I made my first stop on the path to Chicago independent bookseller nirvana at Howard's Books (2000 Maple Avenue, Evanston). The going-out-of-business signs have been up for a while, with their accompanying 50% off posters, but weren't enough to tempt me out of my busy schedule until now.
*Note: I've noticed that the signs about going out of business are now taken down, though the 50% off ones remain, so it's unclear what will be the future of Howard's Books*
Report and Review:
The actual state of the bookstore is hard to comment on, since it's clear once you're inside that this place is in transition. Whether or not it has always been like this--scattered, a bit disorganized--is impossible to tell. There is a special section for rarer finds, which are my favorite to look at, but less often to purchase (since paying well over the list price is not an easy thing to do when the book is very old and sometimes not in great condition, and rare books sometimes evoke an emotional investment that makes them impossible to turn down). Still, those purchases are the most gratifying and make every booklover's shelf (and soul) more complete. I once found an old, illustrated edition of Les Misérables in Poland that is near and dear to my heart. Nothing in the rare section of Howard's intrigued me, though I considered a 19th century Printer's Guide for a while out of my nostalgic connection to the book creation process. Some of the books are overpriced in my opinion, though the half-off sale makes cost a moot point.
Acquisitions:
Wicked Spanish by Howard Tomb (Workman Publishing Company, 1991) just for kicks since I'm taking Spanish 101 next quarter and I knew my Mexican-American roommate would laugh at it (and me); $2.50 (before the 50%).
Watchword by William Fuller (Flood Editions, 2006), inscribed with "it must be complete to be true" and the author's signature; $7.95 (again before the discount).
Recommendation:
This entire feature is more of an epitaph than a review, as Howard's Books won't be around much longer (see Note); I did overhear, however, that the owner plans to continue selling select books online, where I learned from their site that the 50% off is a continual treat for any book that has been in the store over a year. That's the sort of deal I like to hear. These guys keep a variety, as well as the intent to continually add more titles to their inventory for online sale so check them out for that book you're looking for but just haven't found yet--or to stumble across something interesting like I did.
13 July 2009
An Adventure Begins
So, keeping up a blog was not as easy as I originally thought. But, with the time restrictions and minor life complications out of the way, I am more than ready to tap into the founding motivation behind Intellectual Aesthetic all over again.
Just in time for Independents Week, I am finally able to begin a project I've had in mind for a long while now: Chicago bookstore tour.
Books are within a realm of intellect that is often married quite beautifully to aesthetic (an idea I'll explore further soon), and with my publishing internship at Ivan R. Dee I have become nearly obsessed with all things book. Now that I'm indulging my literary love more frequently, I see literature in all aspects of everyday life--sometimes quite literally. There are many small, local bookstores in Chicagoland waiting for a booklover or curious passerby to step inside, and I'm disappointed in myself that I have so far neglected them.
A good bookstore satisfies a craving deep inside a booklover--one that they may not even realize the intensity of, somewhat satiated as it is on Barnes and Noble or a library if lucky. But once that person steps over the threshold of a true bookstore (rare titles limning the walls and a literary savant casually reorganizing a pile of titles with their superior book intellectualism melded with a near-fetish regard for the pages their fingers graze just barely visible in a slight tension of the body when a new customer walks in and must be evaluated for a potential kindred spirit) a booklover cannot help but feel their deep urges bubbling to a loud rumble of voracious book appetite...or you know, the experience is something like that. Regardless, how have I lived in Chicago and Evanston for a collective three years and not done this tour already?
The Project: I will be exploring as many of Chicago's (and Chicagoland's) local bookstores throughout this summer and reporting back here on Intellectual Aesthetic.
To help track my progress, I've joined IndieBound, a site I found after I started researching places I have not stumbled across yet. Their purpose is to promote and celebrate local bookstores nationwide, and to foster a community for book and bookstore lovers. I hope to find and expand upon store listings so that I'm not using IndieBound as a source for this adventure but rather contributing to their resources for others. Ideally, I can get through most of this project by happening upon local bookstores on my own (as was the case for stores I'll feature from Evanston).
Check back for the features and enjoy (book obsession not required)!
Just in time for Independents Week, I am finally able to begin a project I've had in mind for a long while now: Chicago bookstore tour.
Books are within a realm of intellect that is often married quite beautifully to aesthetic (an idea I'll explore further soon), and with my publishing internship at Ivan R. Dee I have become nearly obsessed with all things book. Now that I'm indulging my literary love more frequently, I see literature in all aspects of everyday life--sometimes quite literally. There are many small, local bookstores in Chicagoland waiting for a booklover or curious passerby to step inside, and I'm disappointed in myself that I have so far neglected them.
A good bookstore satisfies a craving deep inside a booklover--one that they may not even realize the intensity of, somewhat satiated as it is on Barnes and Noble or a library if lucky. But once that person steps over the threshold of a true bookstore (rare titles limning the walls and a literary savant casually reorganizing a pile of titles with their superior book intellectualism melded with a near-fetish regard for the pages their fingers graze just barely visible in a slight tension of the body when a new customer walks in and must be evaluated for a potential kindred spirit) a booklover cannot help but feel their deep urges bubbling to a loud rumble of voracious book appetite...or you know, the experience is something like that. Regardless, how have I lived in Chicago and Evanston for a collective three years and not done this tour already?
The Project: I will be exploring as many of Chicago's (and Chicagoland's) local bookstores throughout this summer and reporting back here on Intellectual Aesthetic.
To help track my progress, I've joined IndieBound, a site I found after I started researching places I have not stumbled across yet. Their purpose is to promote and celebrate local bookstores nationwide, and to foster a community for book and bookstore lovers. I hope to find and expand upon store listings so that I'm not using IndieBound as a source for this adventure but rather contributing to their resources for others. Ideally, I can get through most of this project by happening upon local bookstores on my own (as was the case for stores I'll feature from Evanston).
Check back for the features and enjoy (book obsession not required)!
22 April 2009
Perennial Roots: Earth Day
Being Earth Day, I feel the environment is an appropriate subject with which to begin. In the past several years, the United States--and in some senses, the world--has become swept up in the Green Movement. The trend towards environmentalism encompasses a variety of elements: government policy, popular film, campus planning, your "Simply ECO logical" SIGG bottle, etc. It also involves the opportunity to capitalize monetarily on this sudden surge of environmental concern. Modern consumers are at risk of being "greenwashed" by exaggerated claims of eco-friendliness. There are many arguments that have been made about the Green Movement, both its benefits and shortcomings, and greenwashing is merely one discussion to be had. It has, however, prompted action from both the government (in the re-evaluation of environmental marketing) and activists who want to tackle what we could consider the real issue at hand with greenwashing--how does one truly preserve our natural environment? Are there products that fulfill their promise in efforts of conservation, or are they an easy out for guilty consumers?
The best way to understand and appreciate Tiffany Holmes's work is simply to see it, and I highly recommend her site for this purpose. Environmental art is growing in popularity, and numerous artists-turned-activists (or vice versa) have vastly different ways of approaching the topic. In my own work, I turned to Holmes and the idea of greenwashing to create the piece below, "DIY Solutions."
Tiffany Holmes, a Chicago-area artist, has developed several "EcoArt" projects in recent years. She has asked the above questions to herself and others, and became determined to create progress versus merely making a statement. One such project, "World Offset," is a fully-functioning and ongoing website that provides an outlet to make a promise to reduce carbon emission. By declaring to take small actions, such as carpooling or unplugging your computer (which has a surprisingly large effect on power-usage), you create a carbon offset. This reduction of carbon emission is visualized in a rotating graphic that reveals more trees as more pounds of carbon are offset.
World Offset copyright Tiffany Holmes, 2008
Image detail: "Immediate ease of conscience!"
Image detail: "Don't put your kitchen scraps into landfills, make your own with the DIY Compost Jar!", "Distributed By: Green Trends You'll Follow, Inc., Greenwashing, USA, Copyright Denae Dietlein"
Image detail: "Directions: Continuously fill your jar with materials such as fruit peels, veggie scraps, coffee grinds, and then add to it garden debris and leaves. You now have a happy compost concoction ready for decomposing safely in your home, away from landfills. You should start feeling better immediately. Enjoy!", "Note to consumers: A realreducing the net carbon emissions of an individual by their own actions, not by buying something. --Tiffany Holmes"
Though I can't pretend to be a professional environmental artist, I--like many--am both interested and concerned in the future of the current ecological movement. The Green trend is hopefully not just a trend. It could be argued that with the seriousness of human effects on the planet, we don't have the luxury of letting conservation die down any time soon.
What do you think?
What do you think?
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