welshcrew.com/kevin

The man converted to Islam, was banned from stepping onto Israeli soil and has decided to go back into the studio. This is the guy who recorded "The Wind" and now he's putting out albums such as "A Is For Allah".

Is he the Gary Busey of Western Muslims?

I was just listening to Dido - Here With Me

Now You Can Bomb Baghdad From Your Own Home

I read this morning about the latest Command & Conquer PC game and why the Germans are freaking out over it. I'm assuming the German goverment doesn't play Return to Castle Wolfenstein either.

I suppose that's what a lot of people don't like about The United States, the way our culture glorifies war. And I can see their point - watching the news these days is like watching the halftime show for the Super Bowl.

I was just listening to Fishbone - Shakey Ground

Curses! I'm On A Normal Sleeping Schedule

This past weekend forced me to drop my habit of not sleeping....ever. Now, I'm falling asleep around 11-midnight and waking up around 6-8am. How regular is that? I suppose I do feel better. And I was getting really good at functioning without any sleep too. I was getting to the point where I did not feel inclined to pass out in class from exhaustion. I was not blurting out incoherent and stupid remarks in class because of sleep deprivation. I wasn't falling asleep on the L and sleeping through the Damen stop (usually I wake up just before the doors close).

And now I'm going to be all prepared, rested and ready to go for my 10am Dev & Pre-production class. I need to put the finishing touches on my "urban legend" adaptation....

I was just listening to Eric Burden and War - Spill The Wine

The Art of Wheatpasting

I've been curious about the practice of posting up several movie/album/party/propoganda one sheets on various surfaces/places in the big cities. This is what I found:

The Ingredients:
-Wallpaper paste
-Elmers Glue
-Plastic bucket or container
-Course brush or roller
-Shitty Clothes

The Recipe:
-2/3 wallpaper paste
-1/3 elmers glue
-mix well and brush mixture onto surface
-put up poster and cover with wheatpaste
-try to work out the air bubbles
-then get the hell out of there

The Scoop:
It looks best to put them up in a horizontal or vertical lines.
Try not to put them up over other people's work and be
selective about where you paste them. Abandoned
buildings and construction sites are the best. Do not get caught!

I was just listening to Ween - Voodoo Lady

Interesting Times Produce Interesting Art

http://www.waketheworld.org/
http://www.zoltron.com/evil

I was just listening to Wail - The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion

Roots

Brazoria County, TX was surprisingly pleasant this weekend. The weather was nice and relatively cool - the humidity levels were such that SCUBA gear not was required to be outside. The San Benard River was lovely as always with the mud-rich waters and the fresh water barnicle swell in the air. And so it was that the Garrison family convened to the family's Mecca/river house on a late March weekend for my grandmother's funeral.

Friday night was a nice BBQ dinner at a family friend's newly finished palace on The Benard. The master of the palace, Royce Sharp Sr. (father to the not-so-famous U of M/US Olympic swimmer), gave me a personal demonstration of his latest home improvement achievement. He has installed a communications router in a closet which rivals many small/medium office server rooms in terms of functionality and professionalism. The entire house (including all bathrooms) are networked with data, voice and video lines. Royce is in constant competition with the next door neighbor, my uncle, who owns the most expensive and coveted home on The Benard as of the date on this post. Royce has one-up'ed Bruce on the home networking aspect as well as a more fully featured home theater, a larger kitchen with full size Sub Zero fridge/freezer and wine cooler, and an automated security gate to help keep out the worst Brazoria County has to offer.

After Friday night's "twin Sub-Z's" showdown, the family spent Saturday morning bonding over yard work at the family's house. This is what living in this area is all about. Working in the yard is neither a necessity nor a "chore". It is a lifestyle. Some may enjoy getting out into the yard to mow the lawn twice a week, precision bomb fire-ant beds, battle snakes and possums for regional yard control, clean mold off of the house, weed-eat the weeds, edge the edges with the edger, rake leaves, plant flowers, water plants, and sweep the frontbackporchdeckpier.

Right now, I prefer the yard work at my condo: nada. Maybe that will change.

After accomplishing the morning chores, the Chapelwood minister came out to the house to interview my mom and uncles. The minister brought with him, enough food to feed the homeless people in my neighborhood for weeks, especially if you consider the calorie/fat intake from the fried chicken. I forgot this was how things were done down there. It was as comforting as the food was to know there were people thinking about our family (even if they weren't thinking about our cholesterol).

Throughout the weekend, there were no tears or somber moments. I only witnessed laughter, constant conversation over Fox News coverage of the war and the "mmms" and "ahhhs" with each 90+ bottle from the wine room that was opened. I always thought it was a sham that my uncle turned my grandfather's old dark room into a wine cellar. I guess the frat boy enjoys alcohol more than art. On Sunday, my cousin Jill somehow distracted me from The Oscars so I could look through everyone of the 500+ pictures from her wedding that she did not invite me to. Like most wedding pictures I have ever looked at, they sucked. They all looked lame and boring with the exception of an impromp-tu walk on the beach in front of the Del Coronado Hotel in Dan San Diego. Even with this glimmer of hope, I am afraid she is destined to join the ranks of the ordinary. She started her new job with The Devil last week.

The way my family handled everything should have been documented carefully for anyone wanting a fitting tribute to their deceased loved ones. The service was beautiful - a moving performance on the harp from an old friend of the immediate family, another vocal soloist at the secret request of my grandmothers as well as eulogies from my dad and uncle. My brother and I served as pallbearers...I know Gigi would have been proud of all of us. There was a large turnout at the service, burial and after party at the river house. That really spoke to me as did the stories from the eulogies. My grandmother had done something special for our family by setting down roots in the community that I often times loathe. Our family has 43 years of memories on The San Benard and I am sure many more to come...my parents have recently purchased property on the river.

I had a great time catching up with my family - which for those who know me well, may come as a surprise. Everyone seemed quite interested in what I was doing at school and wanted to know what they should be watching in the theater. My uncle, Bruce, who has seemed distant over the past few years, talked to me for a long time about school, future plans and the new Range Rovers - he and Jeff (his partner/lifemate) bought his and his 03' Rovers last month. "They aren't quite the creampuff ride like the LX 470 is, but they're a lot tougher...just what we need them for."

I met my cousin Claire's husband for the first time, even after attending their wedding two years ago. Ferrell and I had an interesting conversation on the evils of Wall Street and the slaughter of the energy trading market at the hands of hedge fund companies. He used to work for The Devil.

My oldest cousin, Melanie, who claims she is "pretty mainstream" talked with me for a long time over the joys of Six Feet Under and what I've been learning in school. Her daughter, Katie, was very impressed that I was "studying to become a director" and insisted that I have her work on my next film. I've got one fan and counting...

Today, I left my parents in the airport and headed for the Blue Line to run home and try to make it to class on time. I felt a sense of depression...seperation anxiety. I had been overwhelmed with love and fellowship from my family this weekend and I wasn't ready for it to stop. I hope that whatever Gigi's departure from our Universe has triggered in our family lasts for years to come. I am excited about my family again.

I was just listening to Lake Trout - Let Me Show You What I'm Used To

Until Tuesday...

Dad is about to pick me up to head to Highland Park for the evening...and then it's George Bush Sr. International Airport tomorrow morning...oh joy.

Hopefully this trip/weekend won't be too painful...and I am not specifically talking about the funeral, either...

Much, much more later...

I was just listening to Dire Straits - Once Upon A Time In The West

Conversations With "The Enemy"

Since I moved to Wicker Park, I have been a regular at Dexter's Hair Design at 2051 W. North Ave - conveniently located 4 blocks away from my place and 1 block away from the Damen L stop. I go there because it is so close and my stylist - Amir - charges me $10 less than everyone else because he just runs the clippers over my scalp (actually, he continues to get more meticulous and detailed on my simple haircut every time I see him). Anyway, I had never really talked with Amir because I like to zone out while I'm getting my hair cut and most hair stylists I've known have never had anything interesting to say. That is, until today.

Amir had the tele on ABC and we listened to Peter Jennings go on about what I'm sure every other anchor has been talking about for the past 12+ hours...and then Amir received a phone call. He began speaking Arabic and seemed quite excited and concerned at the same time while on the phone. Now, I figured that Amir was of Arab decent, but I wasn't sure where exactly he or his family was from. He spoke for about 5 minutes and then hung up the cordless.

"Kevin, that was my parents who live in Baghdad. They're ok...they're at home now and they have food and water. The missiles haven't been hitting anywhere near them yet."

"Holy fucking shit," I replied. "Your parents live in...you're from Iraq...well you know you've got to talk to me about what's going on!"

Amir started off telling me he grew up in Baghdad, a city the size of Chicago. The son of an engineer, he lived reasonably well as a child and after school, he joined the National Army. He served in the Army for 8 years as an infantry/regular. Amir said he never moved up in rank because he was "a trouble maker" and always gave his commanding officers "a lot of shit". His last days in the Army were in 1991 during the Gulf War. He said that he was captured by the Americans and was a POW. However, he in addition to several other Iraqis were part of a planned "strike" against Saddam Hussein in which the Army regulars just left the lines and went home. They did not want to fight for Saddam.

After he was captured, he had no choice but to seek asylum in the United States. Because of the soldier "strike", Hussein was punishing the captured Iraqi soldiers by throwing them in prison, which was followed by torture and a bullet in the head. He came to the United States, relocated to Chicago and has been here ever since.

I asked Amir the inevitable question: what do you and your family think about this? He started off by saying "Saddam Hussein is a fucking asshole. He is a dictator, a murderer and a tyrant. And nobody is going to be sad to see him go." Amir continued in his pissed off tone of voice. "But it should be up to the people of Iraq to deal with Saddam. And it should be up to the people of Iraq to decide who will replace him, and not some puppet chosen by the American government."
Then it got personal. "The United States government...George Bush is an imbecile and a warmonger. I can't stand him, I can't stand to listen to him speak," Amir said.

Well, the government seems convinced that Saddam Hussein is a threat to our country. Do you agree with that," I asked.

"You can watch on television and see how much of a threat Saddam is to this country (USA). He can't keep his Army organized and he's not capable of using weapons of mass destruction against us." Amir said.

"Bush seems concerned that Saddam could provide weapons to terrorists." I stated.

"Saddam wouldn't do that. These weapons, he wants to keep for himself for protection against Iran and Israel and to threaten his own people with. He has never used these weapons unprovoked against the United States, even when he had them. That's not what he has them for."

I think at this point I was speechless, because there wasn't really anything else I could say to Amir. I could tell he was getting sensitive about the subject and rightly so - his family's life is in jeopardy, their city is about to be destroyed and he has definitely earned the right to criticize both Iraq's government and ours.

"Well your family...they do not live near any palaces, military buildings, factories or anything like that," I asked. "No, they live about 2 miles away from anything like that. I think they'll be ok," Amir said.

"Well I am sorry for what our government is doing to your country. I will be thinking about your family while this is going on," I said.

"Thank you...thank you very much. It's not the Americans...it's the American government who is responsible. You do not need to apologize," Amir replied as he handed me a mirror to look over my newly buzzed head.

"Nice job...it looks great." I paid Amir, shook his hand and walked home thinking about the most interesting haircut I have ever had.

I was just listening to Sigur R�s -Svefn g englar

A Day Without Blood Is Like A Day Without Sunshine

The Digital Music Project

I am finally wrapping on my project to rip all of my CDs to 192+ kbps MP3s. In addition, I raided my roommates' CD collections for some of their gems that I did not have. So after spending several days (a few weeks) loading everything into my iTunes music library, I've noticed some interesting stats:

Parallel Universe

I stayed up all night and most of the morning, thinking about my G-ma, my experience at the movie theater earlier that evening and the inevitable military campaign in Iraq. Luke dragged me out last night to see Willard - a very entertaining film, if only to watch Crispin Glover convincingly be affectionate towards a rat. And just as the film was reaching the climax, the fire alarms went off in the movie theater. Apparently, some jerk off(s) pulled a false alarm and we had to leave with only a voucher as compensation. Personally, I would have preferred to see the end of the film and then never go to that theater again...even if it is the closest one to my house. Convenience usually compromises quality...

I didn't go to class today, partly because I knew I could afford to miss but I also because I didn't want to go outside. Occasionally, when events occur that put my universe into a tailspin, I get kind of nervous like something is not right with the world. I only remember it happening a few other times...I'm sure it's just stress.

Anyway, the weirdness continues as I catch up on news today and read about this:
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2003/mar/19gore.html

I guess that's a good thing...good for Al, I'd say that's a nice consolation prize.
The weirdness continues...

I was just listening to Beck - Ramshackle

Bernice "Gigi" Garrison ��1913-2003

To BBC News Readers Around The World, With Love

I was reading the morning news over at the BBC website and started reading the opinion boards to see what people around the world think of The 48 Hour Deadline. I submitted my own opinion (an abstraction of my opinion, rather) which will hopefully will be posted in a few hours by the BBC "Have Your Say" editorial staff.

I hope Mr. Bush will improve his attitude towards foreign policy very soon. I also hope Mr. Hussein will improve his attitude towards complying with the UN very, very, very soon.
Kevin Barnett, USA

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/talking_point/2853335.stm

I was just listening to Talking Heads - Burning Down The House

Kiss Me, I'm Not Irish

In The Tradition of Lenny and Squiggy

This past Wednesday, Luke and I did what anyone who just turned 25 and looking for adventure would do: rent a car and go on a roadtrip. We headed out to Milwaukee, Wisconsin after I got out of class in a strapping Mercury Sable that included the Godsend of all options: a CD player. Even though this was our first time to visit the city, I know Milwaukee has definitely had its fair share of visitors. The French missionaries and explorers began visiting here in the late 16th century. I know you must be asking yourself, "Isn't Milwaukee an Indian name?" Yes it is. In fact, it's pronounced "mill-e-wah-que" which is Algonquin for "the good land."

sorry, had to do it...

No, we didn't have backstage passes to the Alice Cooper show. I bought tickets for the Coldplay show off of Ebay the weekend before from some chap in Chicago (he FedEx'ed them anyway). It was definitely a spontaneous decision - Luke and I had just been talking about going to see Coldplay in June at the UIC Pavillion when we learned about the Milwaukee show. We figured this might be one of the last times they would be playing theaters since I believe they are well on their way to becoming the next U2...

The Road Trip

Roger Ebert Understands...

Someday, I will log my feelings on the current state of affairs with the Bush Administration and Iraq. It's such a complex issue, that I usually feel differently about it everyday. But I came across an article this morning which I thought talked about the issue like nobody else has. Roger Ebert wrote this article concerning the religious ideology behind Bush's decision making process, but more importantly I think it says something wonderful about Christianity...or what I think Christianity is all about - a test of our free will.

http://www.suntimes.com/output/eb-feature/cst-edt-ebert13.html

I was just listening to Neil Young - On Broadway

My Blog Pissed Me Off The Other Night

Wednesday night after Luke and I got back from the Coldplay show in Milwaukee, I immediately hit the blog typing, linking and posting away. It was a great post telling the story of the road trip to Milwaukee, the venue and the concert itself. When I clicked "post", the blogger.com website crashed or had already crashed, because it returned a page with Microsoft SQL garbage errors and I lost the post.

Since then, I've been very busy working on stuff for school. In fact, I'm taking a break from my paper on the Mise-en-scene/costume elements in Unbreakable (2000) which is due later on today. That and I've been pissed off at the blog, so I was giving it no attention hoping it would learn its lesson. I think it has, but maybe I should learn my lesson and not be so compulsive when working on the blog...

Anyway I am hoping that I can recover some of the post over the weekend about the show...because it was a wonderful experience.

I was just listening to U2 - Daddy's Gonna Pay For Your Crashed Car

Calm Like A Bomb

Here is an article from the Columbia Chronicle explaining the reason why my class was abruptly interrupted this past Friday.

I was just listening to Coldplay - Clocks

The State of Music Videos: Update!

Maybe I spoke too soon in my earlier post about music videos and why they all have sucked lately. Well that's still true until The Man In Black decided to 1. Record an incredible cover of Hurt by Nine Inch Nails and 2. Get Mark Romanek to direct the video.

http://www.markromanek.com/video/14.html

This is a beautiful peace of work. Mark Romanek is a mighty powerful man...remember the nice compliment I made about The Perfect Drug video?

I was just listening to Johnny Cash - Hurt

Supergrass @ The Metro

What a show! Following the recommendation of Dan san Diego, I went out to catch the elusive brit rockers at the lovely Wrigleyville theater known as The Metro. This was my first time to the venue after missing out on the 5 tour warm-ups Zwan had there a few weeks ago. It's a really cool venue - a pint sized theater with great sound and plenty of personality.

With Kleinfeld in hand, I made my way up to the balcony and scouted a great view of the stage. The Coral went on right after 7:30 and made for a great opener. They definitely fall into the arena of experimental/indie rock bands who are hitting the scene with full force.

Supergrass went on around 8:15 (early but I assume this was because the gig was all ages) and opened with some great tracks off of their new album including my favorite, Brecon Beacons. They sounded tight and full of fiery power - and had the energy to back that up. For the rest of the show, Supergrass rocked Chicago in fine form, playing some oldies, not-so-oldies and "new shit." The crowd was very cool, all excited and fascinated to see this band - obviously, not a lot of people had actually seen the band before including your's truly.

So, if I were in Austin this coming weekend and had a SXSW wristband, I would definitely be at Stubb's this coming Saturday night.

Instead, I am going to have to settle for The Music/Coldplay in Milwaukee on Wednesday...more on that later.

I was just listening to Sausage - Temporary Phase

If I Should Fall From Grace

As a part of the annual EU Film Festival at The Gene Siskel Film Center this weekend, I had a chance to watch a documentary about The Pogues called If I Should Fall From Grace: The Shane MacGowan Story. I had heard a few of their songs before (Summer In Siam and A Fairytale of New York were used in Basquiat) but didn't know much about the band or MacGowan. He might be hard to look at (in the UK, you can have bad teeth and still be a rock star/sex symbol) and even harder to understand (he makes Ozzy seem well spoken). But the documentary tells a very ironic story about how an Irish band playing Irish folk music became one of the biggest bands in the UK during not only the height of the punk scene, but during the height of the IRA terrorist violence. Actually, I don't think I could imagine a better way of being anti-establishment in the UK than being Irish.

I was just listening to Perry Farrell - Song Yet To Be Sung

Watching Music Videos

After screening some excellent music videos last week in class, I had some time over the weekend to channel surf in between MTV, MTV2, VH1, etc. to see what today's music videos are looking like. Since graduating from high school, I have weened myself off of the Viacom teet and I really didn't know what to expect other than knowing that MTV itself does not have music video programming until very late at night.

So after a weekend of watching music videos, it would appear that the current MTV generation only listens to Hip Hop and Rap music. This isn't necessarily a bad thing except I have a hard time keeping up with who is who. Not to mention that pretty much all of the videos sucked. All of the videos are the same cliche' over and over again; driving in a car while singing/rapping, walking through a club where hot bitches are dancing, rock bands playing a concert either on a well lighted stage or out in the street.

Maybe that's what the kids like these days. But consider these exceptional videos and ask yourself if they still make them like they used to:

The Smashing Pumpkins - Tonight, Tonight
Inspired and a tribute to A Trip To The Moon, with amazing art direction and shot with a vintage hand-crank film camera.

Nine Inch Nails - The Perfect Drug
A creepy story about a man obsessed with drinking absinthe which is a wonderful video to look at. Literally every frame could be hung in an art gallery.

Madonna - Express Yourself
David Fincher directed this video which is inspired and pays tribute to Metropolis.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication
The people who did the Tonight, Tonight video for the Pumpkins did this Nosferatu/art deco styled video where the instruments are expressed in a very clever way.

Pearl Jam - Do The Evolution
Todd McFarland did the first and only video Pearl Jam has done since Jeremy. It resulted in a mind blowing animated video.

I was just listening to De Phazz - Godsdog Information

Copius Amounts of Meat...Yet Another Brazillian Cultural Experience

Yesterday was Luke's birthday so Luke, Chad and I got last minute reservations at Fogo de Ch�o, a Brazillian restaurant which serves their food Churrasco style. After you attempt to conquer the antipasta/salad bar, "Gauchos" roam around the restaurant with spits holding various cuts of meat from Brazil. If the disc to the right side of your place setting is showing green, the Gauchos will keep the succulent meat flowing at a steady pace. Beef sirloin, tenderloin, filets, beef ribs and the beef house cut...chicken wrapped in bacon...lamb chops...pork ribs and pork tenderloin...it becomes a challenge just to keep up with it all. Of course, if you're plate is full and you need a break from the Gauchos, all you have to do is flip the disc on your right side over to red.

Next to our modest table of three was a twenty-four top belonging to Jesse Jackson, Jr. and his entourage. They easily had everyone else in the restaurant out-classed, but all seemed very nice and were having a great time.

As they should have been - according to the manager, this was the second time Jesse Jr. had been in there this week with a large reservation. Other than the price ($43/person) why would anyone not like it? Even the antipasta/salad bar could keep any vegetarian busy for hours with food of outstanding quality. The manager had talked to us for a while about the restaurant - where they get their meat, the cooking process, how the majority of the staff is from Brazil including the Gauchos who all have been trained at their Sao Paul store for 3+ years and their plans for expansion. He was even gracious enough to show us around the kitchen and cooking areas.

Fogo is probably one of the most profitable restaurants in Chicagoland. They probably serve around 300-500 people every evening and their food costs/ingredients are fixed. Most of their meat comes from Chicago/Midwest purveyors with the exception of the lamb which comes from New Zealand.

This is actually the fourth time I've been to Fogo - twice now at the Chicago store but my first and second time was in Houston with my friend Gerardo. It is located in a stripmall area on Westheimer and definitely not as much as a spectacle as the Chicago store...but still quality.

Anyway, it was interesting to see Jesse Jr. out and Fogo is always a cool experience...especially if you're a fan of meat. Afterwards, we headed to Alive One for some drinks and the infamous "Live Music Jukebox". Not a bad way to celebrate a birthday...

I was just listening to Baby Mammoth - Captain Webb

Terror Alert in South Loop

While I was watching The Graduate in my Aesthetics of Film class, a woman came in instructing everyone in our lecture theater to "calmly and immediately evacuate the building." Thankfully the class was on the 6th floor, so I was able to get outside pretty quickly. I walked out into a crowd of confused and nervous students, me definitely being one of them. Students were asking security guards questions but they were not giving answers. I did not see any city police or official authorities. Once outside my building at 624 S. Michigan, I looked down the street towards 600 S. Michigan, and saw that people were gathering outside another Columbia College building. Then some woman stood up on one of the large planters in front of our building and said that "We need everyone to move away from the buildings and leave the area. Have a nice weekend."

I called Luke to check the news to see if anything was going on that would have caused the panic, but nothing was out of the ordinary. I caught up with a woman a recoginized from school and asked her what she knew. She told me that she had never seen anything like that before and that ALL Columbia buildings to be evacuated (17 buildings in and around South Loop). We talked some more and agreed that it must have been some sort of non-specific threat. We told each other to be safe and to have a nice weekend.

Thank God It's Friday.

I was just listening to Ben Kweller - Commerce, TX

I'm Dreaming of a White Carnaval

After missing the Abominable Blizzard of 2003, Chicago finally received her first healthy snow dump tonight - a whopping 7+ inches. That's a lot but doesn't seem like much when compared to how bad NYC and DC were a few weeks ago. Not that I'm complaining. Snow is an interesting character - we marvel at the beautiful frosted landscapes and then quickly sober up as the snow transforms into a big frozen mess. The streets accumulate streams of dirty slush which is then plowed to the curb and becomes a mound of black ice and shit. This is pretty interesting evidence of how dirty automobiles really are. Not to mention the automobiles themselves get a slopped over with this stuff combined with a nice crust of street salt. And it probably will be sometime in April when we see the last of these mounds of black ice and shit finally melt away.

Breaking the tradition of my strict "I Have To See Tits On Fat Tuesday" policy**, I saw a movie this evening with my friend Emily. We went to my new favorite art house theater in Chicago which is showing Cidade de Deus or City of God on one of their seven huge art house screens. I suppose watching a Brazillian film was somewhat appropriate considering the Carnaval/Mardi Gras festivities this evening.

Yes, the film is from Brazil and was adapted from the novel of the same name which documents the government housing project of the same name outside of Rio de Janeiro during the 1960s and 70s. The story is told by one of slums' residents, Busca-Pe (Rocket), a poor black kid who rides the fence between a life of crime and honest work. He is not necessarily the focus of the film's attention as he explains the history and the rise of drug trafficking in the neighborhood. This creates an extremely violent environment that Rocket, and the rest of the characters, must try to survive in. Most fail to do so.

The City of God neighborhood is described in the film as Purgatory, Hell and Vietnam. It is definitely portrayed as nothing less than an urban war zone, which thousands of people live happy and tragic lives simultaneously. Living in homes without running water and electricity doesn't sound as bad as it looks. The cinematography makes an incredible achievement showing what it is like walking around a huge neighborhood without any light. The cinematography also left me with a war photographer/no steady-cam feeling in my stomach but this is appropriate both for the setting of the film as well as the narrator's own story.

This film definitely ranks as one of - if not the most violent film I have ever seen. The opening sequence in which chickens are being slaughtered to eat is a hilarious warning of what is to come. A chicken escapes down the street and the "hoods" chase after it, shooting their guns at it as if it is a natural reflex to shoot at a chicken running through a neighborhood. This scene is eventually revisited and the second time around, it isn't surprising in the least to see them shooting at their meal running away down the street.

I strongly recommend City of God to anyone, especially if they have the stomach for violent films. The film offers an invaluable experience in the humanity of a people and community much different from our own.

** I actually don't have a "I Have To See Tits On Fat Tuesday" policy

I was just listening to Underworld - Mmm Skyscraper I Love You

You're My Playground Love

I had an interesting dream last night...I was traveling to an airport in a limousine with my Dad and Henry Kissenger (but for some reason I called him "your Honor" - I might have mistaken him for Judge Rehnquist) and we kept passing by these terrible car accidents along the highway. Cars were on piled up on top of each other. People were hurt and mangled sitting on top of their cars, and quickly catching on fire due to the wind. In fact, the wind was so strong, it was blowing the limo up on two wheels until we flipped over into a ditch full of water. I somehow got out and got into an emergency vehicle headed for the airport and took a flight home to Michigan. My Dad called me from the airport saying he had found a flight home, but by that time I had already gotten home and I told him "I'm cool, I'll see you when you get here."

That night my family had a party and I was DJ'ing (on my computer) in my bedroom for my friends Brandi, Travis and Catherine explaining my experience earlier that day. I kept saying that "I need to document this witness to tragedy on my weblog!" and that the song "Playground Love" by Air was in my head when the limo flipped over. Then I was paranoid that my Dad was going to think we were smoking pot in my room (which we were not doing...yet). Then I woke up.

I can't help but think this dream was inspired by at least two things: The Levi's commercial with Gael Garcia Bernal and last night's episode of Six Feet Under. Simply amazing.

I was just listening to Air - Playground Love