Posts in Uncategorized
Saucy!

And the Ship Sails On, by Joel Brouwer He faced the sink, one foot up on the edge of the tub. She stood behind him, reaching around. In the mirror, her face rose over his shoulder like the moon, and like the moon she regarded him beautifully but without feeling, and he looked at her as he would at the moon: How beautiful! How distant! No smiling, no weeping, no talking. A man and a woman transacting their magnificent business with the usual equanimity. The man as a passenger walking the ship’s deck at evening and the woman as the moon over his shoulder oiling the ocean with light. Deep in the ship’s belly pistons churned and sailors fed the boilers' roar with coal. On deck just the engine’s dull thrum and a faint click as the woman sets her ring on the cool white lip of the sink.

UncategorizedJack Dysonand the ship sails on, naughty, poem, poetry Comment
The Ventriloquist – A short film starring Kevin Spacey

[youtube=http://youtu.be/pOPJxBjHkgc&w=700]

Great post from The Fox is Black, and nice to see Jameson doing content so well:

‘The Ventriloquist’ is a fantastic short film written and directed by Benjamin Leavitt and staring Kevin Spacey. The film came about as part of a wonderful competition set-up by Trigger Street Productions (‘The Social Network’ and ‘21’) and sponsored by Jameson Whiskey. Designed to uncover up-and-coming film talent, the competition asked people in South Africa, Russia and the USA to submit a 7 page script and the winning three entries got to make their short – each one staring Kevin Spacey.

It’s a wonderful idea and the shorts really don’t disappoint. Leavitt’s film is particularly great. It tells the story of an introverted ventriloquist (Spacey) who tries to match wits with his outspoken marionette. What works so well in Leavitt’s film is how it deals with the difficulties of communication. In a world of e-mail, texts, tweets and every-other form of modern communication it’s not too hard to form a connection with Spacey’s character and to empathize with the difficulties he has simply talking to people face-to-face. In this sense, we could all be viewed as being like ventriloquists from time-to-time. Make sure to put some time aside and watch this film.

You can also view the other two great shorts on Jameson Whiskey’s YouTube page. They come well recommended!

UncategorizedJack Dysoncompetition, entertainment, film, jameson whisky, kevin spacey, ventriloquist Comment
A couple of poems...

  “Hope” is the thing with feathers “Hope” is the thing with feathers - That perches in the soul - And sings the tune without the words - And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard - And sore must be the storm - That could abash the little Bird That kept so many warm -

I’ve heard it in the chillest land - And on the strangest Sea - Yet - never - in Extremity, It asked a crumb - of me.

-- Emily Dickinson

==

Making a Fist We forget that we are all dead men conversing wtih dead men. —Jorge Luis Borges

For the first time, on the road north of Tampico, I felt the life sliding out of me, a drum in the desert, harder and harder to hear. I was seven, I lay in the car watching palm trees swirl a sickening pattern past the glass. My stomach was a melon split wide inside my skin.

“How do you know if you are going to die?” I begged my mother. We had been traveling for days. With strange confidence she answered, “When you can no longer make a fist.”

Years later I smile to think of that journey, the borders we must cross separately, stamped with our unanswerable woes. I who did not die, who am still living, still lying in the backseat behind all my questions, clenching and opening one small hand.

-- Naomi Shihab Nye ==

“Although the wind ...” Although the wind blows terribly here, the moonlight also leaks between the roof planks of this ruined house.

-- Izumi Shikibu ==

UncategorizedJack Dysonhope is the thing with feathers, life, poem, poetryComment
The #BigChairProject: Jay Jay Burridge and the Chilli Con Carnivore

Jay Jay has designed a fantastic chair for Jamie Oliver's Big Chair Project, in which you can bid for chairs designed by top artists - and the proceeds go to an inspiring charity. Watch the film below to get an insight to his design process - and see the finished product. Oh, and if you like the look of his stuff, check out more Dino gear and his rocking custom-made caps (all offices should have a giant triceratops in them, by the way).

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EPPNaQJldvY&w=700]   The BIG Chair Project is the brainchild of the Better Food Foundation, the charity founded by Jamie Oliver. Back in 2002, Jamie established Fifteen, a unique and pioneering restaurant group that uses the magic of food to give young people a chance to have a better future. Ten years on, hundreds of apprentices have graduated from the programme, which trains unemployed youngsters to become professional chefs.

With 2012 marking the 10th anniversary, it was time to do something a little celebratory to raise much-needed funds for the next 10 years.

The BIG Chair Project sees 20 creatives including Sarah Burton, Christopher Bailey, Tracey Emin, Paul Smith, Julien MacDonald and Matthew Williamson customise Fritz Hansen’s iconic ‘ANT’ chair to raise money for the Better Food Foundation.

Each bespoke chair will be auctioned – you can be in with the chance of winning one of six chairs by buying a ticket (from £5) to enter the online lottery. The remaining chairs will be auctioned online until the end of October.

“It’s incredibly exciting to think that Fifteen restaurant and the Foundation have been helping to inspire, educate and empower young people for 10 years now. I’m truly humbled to have such a brilliantly talented group of people from the fashion and art worlds to help on this fantastic project to raise money and help us mark the occasion. If you’d like to help us celebrate too, check out the Foundation website for more info.” – Jamie Oliver

UncategorizedJack Dysonbetter food, big chair project, charity, funding, jamie oliver, scheme, training, youthComment
Snowy Range, Perseids meteor shower – we are hurtling through space on a rock!

Amazing composite image this. We really are spinning around the galaxy on a big rock. The Perseids meteor shower: The Perseids are a prolific meteor shower associated with the comet Swift-Tuttle. The Perseids are so-called because the point from which they appear to come, called the radiant, lies in the constellation Perseus. The name derives in part from the word Perseides (Περσείδες), a term found in Greek mythology referring to the sons of Perseus.

Says photographer David Kingham:

Last night I went out to Snowy Range in Wyoming in search of dark skies for the Perseid meteor shower. I wanted something special for the foreground and I knew the Snowies faced in the perfect direction to get this shot. I started shooting at 10pm and didn't stop until 5 am, I had to change my battery every 2 hours which made for a long night. The moon rose around 1am to light up the mountain range.

This is a composite of 23 images, 22 for the meteors/stars and 1 taken at sunrise for the foreground which was lightly blended in. I also corrected the orientation of the meteors to account for the rotation of the earth (this took forever!)

I had a great night which was made even better because I spent it with my newly adopted dog Emmie, she was a trooper!

Free wallpaper downloads on my website! www.davidkinghamphotography.com/night/h626c32b#h626c32b

UncategorizedJack Dysonastrology, comet swift tuttle, composite imagery, meteor, nature, outdoors, perseids, photograhpy, radiant, snpwies, travel, wyoming Comment
Youn Sun Nah - Calypso Blues

Saw one of the original versions of Calypso Blues on Zissou's blog, reminded me of this bonkers one from 2009, Youn Sun Nah and her voicebox in Korea: [youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2iGwIl-qig&w=700]

(she also did THIS version of Metallica's Enter Sandman - not necessarily easy listening once she gets into it, but nonetheless impressive!)

UncategorizedJack Dysoncalypso, calypso blues, entertainment, entertainmnent, jazz, metallica, music, youn sun nahComment
What I won't miss, what I'll miss (Nora Ephron)

From Lists of Note, 27 June 2012: The great Nora Ephron passed away yesterday, aged 71, following a battle with leukemia that began in 2006. She had many strings to her bow, but most notably wrote the screenplays to some of the best loved films ever to grace the big screen, many of which she also directed and produced. She wrote the following lists — of things she won't and will miss — in 2010 and used them to close her book, I Remember Nothing.

(Source: I Remember Nothing: And Other Reflections; Image: Nora Ephron, via.)

What I Won't Miss

Dry skin Bad dinners like the one we went to last night E-mail Technology in general My closet Washing my hair Bras Funerals Illness everywhere Polls that show that 32 percent of the American people believe in creationism Polls Fox TV The collapse of the dollar Bar mitzvahs Mammograms Dead flowers The sound of the vacuum cleaner Bills E-mail. I know I already said it, but I want to emphasize it. Small print Panels on Women in Film Taking off makeup every night

What I Will Miss

My kids Nick Spring Fall Waffles The concept of waffles Bacon A walk in the park The idea of a walk in the park The park Shakespeare in the Park The bed Reading in bed Fireworks Laughs The view out the window Twinkle lights Butter Dinner at home just the two of us Dinner with friends Dinner with friends in cities where none of us lives Paris Next year in Istanbul Pride and Prejudice The Christmas tree Thanksgiving dinner One for the table The dogwood Taking a bath Coming over the bridge to Manhattan Pie

UncategorizedJack Dysonlists, nora ephron, pride and prejudice, quotes, the guy quoteComment
Tom Waits - Hell Broke Luce

[youtube=http://youtu.be/0Fju9o8BVJ8&w=700] The video for Hell Broke Luce is bonkers/brilliant.

"Luce" is a reference to Jeff Lucey, a US soldier who took his own life after returning from a tour in Iraq, hanging himself with a hose in his parents' basement. "What was his name? Jeff!" It's a heavy, heavy song.

UncategorizedJack Dyson Comments